Founded in 1957 by brothers Alan and William Anixter, this Skokie-based company grew into one of the country's leading wholesalers of wire. In 1986, when annual sales stood at about $600 million, Anixter was purchased for about $500 million by the Itel Corp., a large holding company controlled by Chicago financier Sam Zell. Itel soon sold many of its businesses, but retained Anixter. In 1995 Itel became Anixter International Inc., also based in Skokie. At the end of the 1990s, Anixter sold close to $3 billion annually and employed about 1,000 Chicago-area residents.

This entry is part of the Encyclopedia's Dictionary of Leading Chicago Businesses (1820-2000) that was prepared by Mark R. Wilson, with additional contributions from Stephen R. Porter and Janice L. Reiff.