August 3, 1949 – Oscar E. Peterson, Jr. and George H. Sapna, Sr. organized Peninsula Plumbing Supply Company as a partnership, located at 613 Water Street, Seaford Delaware.
November 15, 1949 – the Company was reorganized as a corporation and chartered under the State of Delaware laws.
August 1955 – due to continued growth and need for more space, the Company acquired property at 200 North Delaware Avenue (formerly owned by the Delaware Hosiery Mills). This new facility provided 21,000 square feet of warehouse storage space and 54,000 square feet for outside storage and parking.
May 4, 1964 – Opened a branch store in Salisbury, Maryland, due to continued growth and the need to obtain a larger share of sales in the Company’s marketing are.
November 1965 – Purchased approximately thirteen acres (13) of land, on Dulaney Street, due to opportunities to provide warehousing services to the DuPont Company in Seaford. A one-story sprinkler-protected building was constructed comprising 123,000 square feet of floor space
April 24, 1967 – Operations began at the new Dulaney Street location.
July 17, 1969 – ground was broken for a 203,000 square foot addition to the original warehouse. This addition was competed and operations started on April 10, 1970.
June 1, 1971 – The Company name was officially changed to Penco Corporation, after twenty-one (21) years of growth and operating under the name of Peninsula Plumbing Supply Company.
July 1972 – purchased additional land and began construction of a 48,000 square foot warehouse on Dulaney Street’s north side.
Fall 1974 – began construction of a 208,000 square foot warehouse addition, and this facility received its first product on October 8, 1975.
November 2, 1977 – the company announced its leasing of an East Main Street Salisbury, Maryland building, allowing us to expand in that market.
July 14, 1978 – The House of Baths, a retail store featuring everything for the bath, opened its doors in the front of the East Main Street Salisbury location.
September 18, 1978 – opened a recycling operation for DuPont in a 30,000 square foot leased facility on Stein Highway, in Seaford, Delaware. An additional 30,000 square feet was added on January 2, 1980 – to house a nylon recycle process.
1981 – Completion of another ware house addition of 208,000 square feet, on the North side of Dulaney Street.
May 1984 – Opened Rehoboth Beach, Delaware wholesale branch facility, due to the increase in new construction in the Eastern half of Sussex County.
February 1985 – Opened beautiful new 43,000 square foot facility on Seaford’s Stein Highway, after outgrowing our wholesale corporate headquarters on Delaware Avenue.
October 8, 1987 – Opened Easton wholesale branch, expanding our market share.
February 24, 1988 – Built a new 3,600 square foot warehouse to expand the Rehoboth branch.
March 1989 – Opened a 21,000 square foot warehouse addition at Seaford’s Corporate Headquarters on Stein Highway in order to provide room for the dynamic growth of our business.
January 1990 – Penco Service Center opened 60,000 feet of additional leased warehousing. This building was utilized for repacking Nylon yarn and additional warehousing, and this operation was later moved to Dulaney Street, in October 1996.
April 6, 1992 – Opened Newark branch, in a new 9,000 square foot building purchased in Sandy Brae Industrial Park., after our development of a substantial customer base. An additional 8,000 sq. ft. was added in April 1994.
October 29, 1993 – Closed The House of Baths, due to a change in marketing strategy. The Salisbury branch moved to a new location on Snow Hill Road in November of 1997. This new location continues to be more convenient to our customers, thus improving our ability to serve them.
September 15, 2000 – Opened Camden branch, originally an 8,500 square foot store, following surveys indicating Penco had opportunities to serve the Dover area. Later, adjacent property was purchased, and in 1994 an additional 1,500 square feet was added to this branch. In 2007 another 5,000 square feet of storage was added.
April 2001 - Following the DuPont Company’s consolidation of their warehousing operations, their contract with Penco was terminated. After extensive building renovation, Penco Public Warehousing was born. Since that time, the Company has successfully leased nearly all the available space to a variety of clients. Trucking and handling services are also available.
Fall 2005 – Following observations of trends in the luxury kitchen and bath industry, and an analysis of our growing market, began plans for designing, building, and opening Elegant Designs Showroom.
Fall 2006 – Completed a 40,000 square foot addition to our Seaford Headquarters, providing us a total of 103,000 square feet for our central distribution center.
Late 2006 to Summer 2007 - Hired architects, contractors, and kitchen and bath showroom designers and industry experts, plus showroom professionals, as we prepare for our Fall 2007 Grand Opening.
Tips Before You Visit | Meet our showroom professionals
October 16, 2007: Ribbon Cutting: Elegant Designs, Division of Penco, held its Ribbon Cutting, assisted by the Seaford Chamber of Commerce's Executive Director, Paula Gunson. To view our slideshow, click the above photo or here: Ribbon Cutting Slideshow
