Longley Supply marks 100 years of operation

BY LAUREN DZUBAK
Special to The Wholesaler

Longley employees pose for a picture outside the comapny in 1912.

In 1906, Longley Supply Company got its start in Wilmington, N.C., as a one-man heating contracting business. Over the past 100 years, the family owned business has grown to include plumbing fixtures, pipes, electrical and HVAC systems, and expanded to include nine locations.

Today, Longley Supply is one of the leading suppliers in southeastern North Carolina, and remains a family owned business. With the recent presidency of Emily Longley, a new generation has come to the helm, and we take a look back at the history of Longley Supply, and ahead to the future.

Longley’s history

The Longley name first appeared in Wilmington in 1906, when Georgia native Henry E. Longley visited the growing port town to install a heating system in a private home. Longley quickly surmised that Wilmington was ripe with opportunities for a young businessman, and he decided to relocate his business from Savannah permanently.

“My father had very good credit,” recalled Henry Longley Jr., who served as Longley’s president from 1962 to July 2006. “Not a lot of business men had good credit at that time, which is how he ended up in the supply business.”

In July 1906, Longley opened his heating contractor business under the name of H.E. Longley and

Henry E. Longley

Company. The small business found success in Wilmington, and in April 1910, Longley moved to a new, larger location and added plumbing fixtures to his flourishing heating business.

The business continued to grow, adding employees and customers, and in 1946 electrical products were added to the inventory. Moving to a larger location, Longley added his first customer showroom and renamed the business Longley Supply Company. Business in the North Carolina and South Carolina coastal area was increasing, and recognizing the opportunity for expansion, Longley opened a branch in Myrtle Beach, S.C., in November of that year.

The Longley name came to mean quality and superior service in the Cape Fear Region. The family owned business was staffed by loyal and hardworking employees, and Longley believed that treating his staff well was one of the keys to success. “We offered an employee profit sharing plan all the way back to the 1950s,” said Henry Longley Jr., “which is an amenity not offered by many companies at that time.”

Henry Longley Jr.

In 1951, Henry Longley Sr. passed away, and longtime Longley employee N.A. McKenzie took over the presidency. At the time, Henry Jr. was attending the Valley Forge Military Academy, and following graduation, he enrolled at North Carolina State University and graduated in 1955 with a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering. After serving time in the Air Force, Henry Jr. took over as president of Longley Supply in 1962.

“Business was much different in those days,” said Henry Longley Jr. “All the supplies came by rail car, so our branches had to be located close to the rail road tracks. And all the physical labor was done by man, not machines. A porcelain tub would weigh up to 1,200 pounds, and it was someone’s job to lift that off the train cars.”

According to Longley, the whole process of doing business has changed: “All business was conducted by hand in those days, and a handshake was as good as a contract. People were more formal in some ways, though — our plumbers worked in neckties!”

When Henry Jr. became president, Longley Supply had three branches and approximately 40 employees. On April 10, 1962, the company moved to its current location, 2018 Oleander Drive in Wilmington, thus consolidating all departments under one roof.

The future of Longley Supply

Longley Supply flourished under the leadership of Henry Jr., and they currently boast nine branches in southeastern North Carolina: Wilmington, Myrtle Beach, New Bern, Jacksonville, Morehead City, Ocean Isle Beach, Fayetteville, Lumberton and Raleigh. Longley employs a staff of more than 120.

Emily Longley

In July of this year, Henry Jr.’s daughter, Emily Longley, became president, while Henry Jr. took up post as chairman of the board. Emily started working at Longley during the summers when she was in high school, helping out in the bookkeeping department. After graduating from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and working as a travel agent for a year, Emily returned to the family business and began handling inventory in the showrooms. She stayed on with the family business, taking care of purchasing.

“We are very proud of the hard work and dedication our employees show to Longley,” said Emily. “I believe they bear a great deal of responsibility for the company’s success.”

As president, Emily plans to stick with the values and ideals that have made Longley Supply a success for the past century. She understands that the company was built on customer service, a formula that will not change.

“Our philosophy is simple” Emily said. “We consistently trust our staff and do better work that our competitors to create greater value for the customer.”