The History of Metal Supermarkets

Metal Supermarkets has been providing businesses and customers in the United Kingdom with fast and reliable metal services since 1994.

1985

Founded by William “Bill” H. Mair, the first Metal Supermarkets store was established outside Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1985. Bill, an executive from the metals industry for over 30 years, envisioned a new kind of metal distributor that would cater to small-quantity buyers and serve a wide and diverse range of industries. By providing efficient, friendly service, Metal Supermarkets quickly became a popular choice among many metal-dependent businesses.

1987

Metal Supermarkets’ unique business model quickly made it a success and it wasn’t long until interested entrepreneurs wanted to take advantage of the system Bill Mair created. In 1987 Metal Supermarkets began franchising in Canada, opening a 2nd location in Scarborough, Ontario.

1994

With several successful locations operating in Canada, expansion into the United Kingdom followed with the first franchise in the United Kingdom opening in the Birmingham area.

1996

With success in Canada and the United Kingdom, Metal Supermarkets soon began franchising in the United States, opening a store Atlanta, Georgia in 1996. This location is the longest serving US franchise. The following year saw more US expansion with locations opening in Buffalo, New York; Cincinnati, Ohio; and Dallas, Texas.

2001

After five years of steady growth, the Metal Supermarkets network experienced a surge in 2001, opening six new locations across North America. Throughout the year, Fort Wayne, Indiana; Fort Worth, Texas; Lexington, Kentucky; Roseville, Minnesota; Nashville, Tennessee; and Burnaby, British Columbia all welcomed new Metal Supermarkets stores.

2007

After over 10 years of sustained network growth, Metal Supermarkets launch an eCommerce site in 2007 to meet the growing needs of online customers. Relying on the backbone of North American stores, the eCommerce site added to our ability to deliver speed, variety and convenience.

2010

Under the leadership of current President and CEO Stephen Schober, a management buyout was completed in 2010.

2012

With a renewed focus on growth, new Metal Supermarkets locations opened in the USA to better serve the Chicago and Pittsburgh areas.

2013

Continuing our growth effort, 5 new Metal Supermarkets stores opened in markets such as Indianapolis, Indiana; Norristown, Pennsylvania; Plano, Texas; Wheat Ridge, Colorado; and Vancouver, British Columbia.

2014

As the preeminent small-quantity metals provider, Metal Supermarkets had grown to over 70 locations spanning Canada, the US and the UK; and continued that trend in 2014 opening new Metal Supermarkets locations in markets such as Anaheim, California; Austin & Houston, Texas; and Niles, Illinois.

2015

Metal Supermarkets continued to experience strong growth, with new stores established to serve markets such as Houston, Texas; Phoenix, Arizona; Fairfield, New Jersey; Knoxville, Tennessee; Beltsville, Maryland; Greensboro, North Carolina; and Richmond, Virginia. In September 2015, franchisees and corporate staff gathered at the annual Metal Supermarkets Franchisee Conference to celebrate Metal Supermarkets’ 30th anniversary! There was plenty of reason to celebrate; from a single store to over 80 locations worldwide, Metal Supermarkets continues to thrive and expand to better serve your small-quantity metal needs.

2016

With the New Year came continued success and growth for Metal Supermarkets. In 2016, the network grew to 85 locations, adding stores in Raleigh, North Carolina, Southeastern Houston, Texas; Miami, Florida; Columbus, Ohio; Tampa, Florida; San Antonio, Texas and Las Vegas, Nevada.

2017

For the first time in 3 years, Metal Supermarkets opened new stores in Canada with locations in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Kelowna, British Columbia opening in 2017. These were followed by new store openings in Jacksonville, Florida; Dayton, Ohio and as far north as Anchorage, Alaska, bringing the total number of stores to 88 worldwide, with the promise of more to come in 2018.

2020

After 35 years, Metal Supermarkets opened its 100th store with a new location in San Diego, CA. With this milestone, Metal Supermarkets continues to grow and expand into new markets, helping businesses and consumers across Canada, the US and the UK get the metal they need, quickly and easily.

2021

We digitally transformed our customer experience by launching a brand new eCommerce platform. This made it easy for customers to order the metal they need, whenever they need it.

We also continued our UK expansion with the opening of our eighth location in the historic maritime district of Greenwich, London. This strategic addition provides another store to provide customers in southeast London with convenient access to any quantities of metal.

2024

The network achieved significant growth with the opening of 9 new locations across the US and Canada, expanding our network to 130 total stores.

2025

The future is bright for Metal Supermarkets as we celebrate 40 Years since the first store opened in Mississauga, Ontario which launched a business as solid as steel!

At Metal Supermarkets, Nobody Cuts Like We Do.

Visiting Metal Supermarkets for the first time? You’ll be greeted by a friendly, knowledgeable team ready to help with all your metal needs. With over 40 years of trusted service, we’ve maintained our core values while continually evolving to better serve our customers.

Today, Metal Supermarkets offers an expanded range of services, making us the go-to source for metal supply and custom solutions. Whether you need metal in small, medium, or even large quantities of metal, Metal Supermarkets is your one-stop shop for any metal, any size, cut and ready fast!