Winona-based Fastenal announced that longtime Chief Executive Officer Dan Florness will retire effective July 16.
The company’s board of directors met Dec. 19 and elected President and Chief Sales Officer Jeffrey Watts to succeed Florness.
Florness, who grew up in western Wisconsin and earned an accounting degree at the University of Wisconsin River Falls, worked at a major public accounting firm before former CEO and co-founder Bob Kierlin recruited him to Fastenal in 1996. In 2016, Florness became CEO, succeeding Will Oberton.
“Fastenal is blessed with great people, and the opportunity to be a member of this team for 30 years has been an honor,” Florness said in a news release.
Fastenal distributes fasteners and supplies to manufacturers and industrial customers. It has more than 25,000 employees and 1,600 branch locations.
Under Florness, Fastenal has invested heavily in customer connection through its vending machines and onsite locations, evolving from a distributor of products to a supply-chain partner with an expanded customer list and “high-touch, high-tech” approach.
During Florness’ tenure as CEO, Fastenal’s annual revenue and earnings will have more than doubled from sales of $3.9 billion in 2015 to the projected $8.2 billion in sales for 2025. Annual profits were $516 million in 2015 and project to reach nearly $1.3 billion in 2025.
Fastenal’s stock has had a total return of 440% since Florness started as CEO, consistently outperforming the S&P 500 Index’s return of 303% during that time.
