Ken & Diane Hendricks

BELOIT, Wis. – Ken Hendricks, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of ABC Supply Co. Inc., never lost touch with his roots.
Hendricks was born on Sept. 8, 1941 and was a resident of Afton, Wis. He grew up the son of a roofer in Janesville, Wis. Working side-by-side with his dad, he saw firsthand the disrespect that his father and his colleagues received from suppliers. He became determined to make something of himself, while vowing to never forget the working man.

“My dad showed me what true character is,” he said. “It’s the big reason why I feel the way I do about our customers. I like them and respect them.”

That passion helped ABC Supply reach approximately $3 billion in annual sales in just 25 years and helped land the company on Forbes magazine’s list of America’s Largest Private Companies. But for Hendricks, success meant helping his customers do their jobs well. He knew that professional contractors need a dependable roofing and exterior building products supplier that can deliver the goods, because he’d been there.

At age 17, Hendricks dropped out of school and spent the next four years driving a repair truck for Wisconsin Power & Light during the day and working a second fulltime job as a draftsman at a conveyor company at night. As he drove the repair truck around town, he noticed the houses with worn shingles. After his shift, he’d go back to those houses and offer to re-shingle the roof the following weekend.

That entrepreneurial spirit eventually allowed him to hire his own roofing crews. Smaller roofing jobs led to bigger jobs for military bases and large retail chains. By his 30th birthday, Hendricks had 500 roofers working for him.

A decade later, Hendricks and his wife, Diane, owned three prosperous companies— Blackhawk Roofing Company, which did commercial roofing, International Roofing, which did residential roofing and government work, and Hendricks Real Estate Properties. Tired of dealing with multiple suppliers – many of which were unable or unwilling to give him what he needed – Hendricks envisioned a national distribution chain. Then he set out to create one.

In 1982, he acquired three supply centers from Bird & Sons Inc. These centers were the first locations of the new American Builders and Contractors Supply. Hendricks’ dream was to put his contractor customers’ needs before everything else, treating them like the professionals they are, giving them the tools they deserve, and upgrading their image along the way.

Today, with 6,000 associates, 390 locations in 46 states and the District of Columbia, and sales of nearly $3 billion, ABC Supply is the largest wholesale distributor of roofing in the United States and one of the nation’s largest distributors of siding, windows and other select exterior building products.

Along with the success of ABC Supply and its strategic business units came other business opportunities. Hendricks owned all or controlling interest in, and held active board and management positions with, a diverse list of companies, including American Aluminum Extrusion Company LLC, American Purpac Technologies LLC, Amfinity Capital LLC, Corporate Contractors Inc., Hendricks Development Group, Hendricks Holding Co. Inc., ACM Gutter Operations, American Slate Company, Charleston Metal Works, Gem Pharmaceuticals LLC, Henry Technologies Inc., Humane Manufacturing LLC, Kingnut International LLC, Gateway Insurance Co. Inc., American Patriot
Insurance Agency Inc. and Southeastern Iowa Port Terminal LLC.

In the Beloit area, Hendricks invested vision, along with considerable financial resources and time, in a vast assortment of enterprises and activities. Among the extensive and ambitious rehab projects he undertook were reclaiming the old Beloit Corp.’s 35-acre complex as a multi-tenant manufacturing and office center. There are multiple examples of Hendricks personally appealing to prospective tenants and, in some cases, offering financial backing to their enterprises as well. The result is an enhanced tax base and the creation of hundreds of new jobs in the community. Other projects include turning a vacant nursing home into a halfway house and rehabilitating and repurposing an abandoned shopping mall as a convention center and new library for Beloit.

Hendricks sat on the boards of a variety of organizations that share his mission of improving the quality of life through employment opportunities, education and urban development. Among the organizations he served were the National Roofers & Distributors Council (Honorary Chairman, 1991-2007), Hendricks Foundation (Director), Rock Valley Community Programs (Director, 1996-2007), Beloit 2000 (Director, 1988- 2007); Independent Disability Services (Director, 2000-2007), Sinnissippi Council, Boy Scouts of America (Director, 2000-2007), Forward Janesville (Director, 2003-2007), Beloit College (Member of Board of Trustees, 1996-2007), Blackhawk State Bank (Member of Board of Directors, 1996-2007), Stateline Council 100 (Director, 2003- 2007), Beloit Inn Owners Association (President, 2001-2004), United Way and the Greater Beloit Chamber of Commerce (President, 1990).

Hendricks is survived by his wife, Diane Hendricks, their seven children and their families.