PEI-Genesis has production and sales facilities all over the world, but it all started when two friends went door-to-door during the Great Depression to repair radios.
Its innovative distribution model – delivering custom-engineered solutions – now supports military, aerospace, industrial, medical, transportation, and energy customers worldwide, but Philadelphia-area’s PEI-Genesis had humble beginnings. During the Great Depression, two best friends, who shared a love of electronics, went door to door repairing home radios – for just a dollar each.
Those two friends, Murray Fisher and Bernie Bernbaum, continued to exceed customer expectations, and in June 1946 formed PEI-Genesis, a company still guided by its founders’ values of innovation, integrity, teamwork, and delivery of excellence to its customers.
“My dad, Murray, and my godfather, Bernie, lived as next-door neighbors for almost 60 years,” says Steven Fisher, chairman and CEO of PEI-Genesis. “They had a knack for satisfying their customers and a clear vision for electronics innovation that has guided us to this day. I am so proud to celebrate our 70th year in business and continue that family tradition and vision with our cherished employees.”
PEI-Genesis has seen a number of significant changes in its history:
- In 1952, PEI-Genesis became a franchised value-add ITT Cannon distributor.
- In the 1990s, the company began manufacturing Standard-K and Sure-Seal connectors and created the Field Applications Engineering Group to provide customers needed technical support.
- In 2000, PEI-Genesis became a franchised value-add Amphenol distributor and started production in the United Kingdom.
- By 2011, the company had made the move to online shopping with the introduction of MyPEI.
- In 2015, the company’s production facility in Zhuhai, China, its first in Asia, opened.
- In April 2016, the company acquired FilConn Inc., adding the capability to manufacture custom, quick-turn interconnect solutions.
- Now with a workforce of 700 people in a dozen countries, PEI-Genesis satisfies tens of thousands of customers around the world with 17 sales offices, five production facilities, and a global headquarters in Philadelphia.
“Whether we were selling receiving tubes for TV sets in the 1970s or custom-designed connectors or cable solutions today, we have been and always will be guided by our desire to exceed customer needs,” says Fisher. “If you think about our growth beyond Philadelphia – across North America, then to Europe, and recently to Asia – it has always been driven by a desire to help customers solve problems using the best available technology.”
Founder Murray Fisher died in 2013 at the age of 101; Bernie Bernbaum, now 102, still resides in Philadelphia.
PEI-Genesis, which is adding new capabilities daily, has grown into new markets such as commercial air, oil and gas, industrial, and rail/mass transit. Responsive service, fast shipping, and one of the largest inventories of electronic components anywhere allows PEI-Genesis to provide access to the brands design engineers trust. More than 70% of all products sold are assembled to order. In addition, PEI-Genesis’ Engineered Solutions Group designs and builds custom interconnect solutions and cable assemblies, engaging with customers early in the design process and partnering through delivery and optimization. The company is proud of its expertise in creating high-quality solutions for the harshest environments.
“We are driven by a desire to be the best and the fastest at solving customers’ technical problems and partnering with them from design to delivery,” says Russ Dorwart, PEI-Genesis’ president and COO. “It’s been an honor for so many of us to be a part of a family business with such a commitment to its partners and customers.”
“Our company is an amazing story about friendship, about meeting customer needs, and about constantly innovating to become our customers’ problem-solver of choice,” says Fisher. “We are looking forward to our next 70 years!”