IWC History Overview

Institutional Wholesale began operations in 1957 on a modest scale - one salesman, one deliveryman, and one truck. And its distribution area stopped at Putnam County's borders. In 1958, Jimmy W. Mackie bought a half-interest in the company. The sales volume that year was about $100,000.

The next year, Mackie became the sole proprietor and operated the company by himself until 1968, when he and his brother LeRoy formed a corporation and moved operations to the company's previous complex at 25 South Whitney Avenue in Cookeville.

With wise, innovative management and careful attention to customer service, the company has grown from a small business to a large and complex corporation with approximately 180 employees, 40 vehicles, a 55-county distribution area and a data processing system that monitors multimillion dollar sales. The company has been a member of the Frosty Acres buying group since 1969.