1951: Les and Marjory Hodkin bought out an Electric & HVAC Store in Wellington, Ks. The inventory was small enough to be moved in their station wagon. Bringing their new stock to Arkansas City, they opened a lighting showroom. They did business on a handshake and a person’s word, working by intuition, a look eye-to-eye, and belief in the common man.

1974: The Hodkins' son-in-law, Lyle Eaton, began working at Mid-West in 1974.

Lyle Eaton, earned his degree in Electrical Engineering at Oklahoma A&M, and after 14 years in the industry, brought his great knowledge to Mid-West, offering unequaled services and support to customers — designing control systems, modifying and building panels and controls.

Lyle and his wife, Terry, expanded the area that their family covered into northern Oklahoma. They also expanded their expertise and services.

Lyle and Terry grew with the ever-changing industry and saw the dawning of a new era:  automation and electronics.

1989: Having grown up at Mid-West, Curtis Eaton, returned to the store to work full-time with his parents. Now, over half a century after his grandparents founded the store, he's upholding his family's long tradition of service to the electrical trade.

Today: The inventory at Mid-West's Arkansas City center has grown steadily — and the store is expanding to better serve Mid-West's customers throughout throughout the Kansas/Oklahoma border region.

2003: Randy Cubbage came onboard with the Mid-West family,

Randy Cubbage, with over 30 years in the business, is one of Kansas's leading experts in electrical products distribution. Starting in 1977, Randy worked from warehouse, to purchasing, quotations and sales. In 1996, with a partner, he started a new electrical supply company from the ground up. In 2000, Randy joined a national electrical distributor. In 2003, Mid-West brought him aboard to open their Wichita branch, which he's grown, and manages to this day.

to grow and expand their family business. With the help, support, and faith of Lyle and Terry, Randy opened a new branch in Wichita.

When the Wichita branch opened, it started out with a small inventory and staff, but quickly began growing.

2006: The Wichita branch moved into a huge new facility at 925 North Mosley Street, in the heart of Wichita's industrial district. This expanded the Wichita operation 2 ¹⁄2 times in size — allowing for a large storage capacity indoors and outdoors for conduit (and for many other products).

Today: The inventory and number of employees at Mid-West's Wichita center has doubled -- and the store is constantly innovating to better serve Mid-West's customers, throughout central Kansas. Recently, the store added drive-through convenience to its will-call pickup service, and expanded its hours to better serve our valued customers.