Doing business in DFW

13 Dallas-Fort Worth firms rank on new Forbes list of largest U.S. private companies

Which local company could this possibly be?

Photo courtesy of Mary Kay

More than a dozen Dallas-Fort Worth companies have earned some major bragging rights. Forbes has released its new list of the country’s largest privately owned companies based on annual revenue, and 13 local firms make the cut.

They are:

Grand Prairie-based alcohol and wine distributor Republic National Distributing, No. 25, $11.9 billion in annual revenue.
Dallas-based conglomerate Sammons Enterprises, No. 70, $5.8 billion in annual revenue.
McKinney-based roofing distributor SRS Distribution, No. 80, $5.4 billion in annual revenue.
Irving-based arts-and-crafts retailer Michaels, No. 81, $5.3 billion in annual revenue.
Dallas-based luxury retailer Neiman Marcus, No. 101, $4.7 billion in annual revenue.
Irving-based electrical systems and equipment maker Consolidated Electrical Distributors, No. 103, $4.6 billion in annual revenue.
Fort Worth-based food and beverage distributor Ben E. Keith, No. 107, $4.2 billion in annual revenue.
Dallas-based oil and gas explorer Hunt Consolidated, No. 113, $4 billion in annual revenue.
Frisco-based transportation and logistics software provider Transplace, No. 127, $3.6 billion in annual revenue.
Addison-based cosmetics retailer Mary Kay, No. 164, $2.8 billion in annual revenue.
Plano-based senior healthcare provider Golden Living, No. 178, $2.6 billion in annual revenue.
Dallas-based general contractor Austin Industries, No. 217, $2.1 billion in annual revenue.
Dallas-based transportation and logistics company Mode Transportation, No. 220, $2.1 billion in annual revenue.

Perhaps surprisingly (or not, to its legions of fans) San Antonio-based H-E-B ranks highest on the list among Texas companies. It lands an impressive fifth on the Forbes list.

According to Forbes, the grocery chain’s annual revenue is $32.8 billion, making it the largest private company in Texas. On its website, H-E-B reports annual sales of $32 billion. H-E-B’s financial success can be tied in large part to its popularity among Texas grocery shoppers, of course.

Nearly all of the Texas companies in the Forbes ranking are based in the Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston areas. As well as the 13 DFW companies, five Houston businesses companies show up on the list:

Car dealership group Gulf States Toyota, No. 45, $8.3 billion in annual revenue.
Energy company Calpine, No. 48, $8 billion in annual revenue.
Petroleum and petrochemical products marketer Tauber Oil, No. 61, $6.7 billion in annual revenue.
Casino, restaurant, and sports conglomerate Fertitta Entertainment, No. 166, $2.8 billion in annual revenue.
BMC Software, No. 219, $2.1 billion in annual revenue.

The only other Texas company on the Forbes list is San Antonio-based construction engineering company Zachry Group. It ranks 225th, with annual revenue of $2 billion.

One other company on the Forbes list, New Jersey-based IT company SHI International Corp., has a strong connection to Texas. Austin billionaire Thai Lee, with a net worth estimated at $4.1 billion, is co-founder, president, and CEO of SHI. The company ranks 28th on the Forbes list, with annual revenue of $11.1 billion.

Minnesota-based agribusiness giant Cargill Koch Industries nabbed the No. 1 spot on the annual ranking.

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Power News

Power company with built-in backup battery service expands to Dallas

Base Power

Base Power battery in the backyard.

Austin energy company Base Power has expanded into Dallas-Fort Worth, with service available in Dallas, Irving, North Richland Hills, Coppell, and beyond.

Founded in 2023 and headquartered in Austin, Base Power is an energy provider that offers a home backup power system as part of its plan — providing battery-powered home energy that keeps the lights on during power failures.

When the grid goes down, the battery automatically powers the home.

Comparable "whole house" backup systems start at $15,000 and most need gasoline to run.

Base's goal is to provide backup power during outages more cheaply than a generator or comparable battery — keeping homes powered for 24 hours if/when the grid fails.

They send energy from their batteries back to the grid when demand surges, which can earn money back, which keep their prices down. Batteries may power your home to support the grid, even if there’s no outage. The battery charges at times when energy is cheap, such as overnight, and may share some power back when the grid is stressed.

Customers don’t actually buy the battery: They pay a $695 installation fee and a monthly fee of $19. They also make Base Power their electricity supplier, paying an 8.5 cents-per-kilowatt-hour.

In addition to Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington, Plano, Base also serves parts of Houston such as Harris County, Katy, Sugar Land, and Magnolia; and cities around Austin like Round Rock, Pflugerville, Temple, and Killeen.

They've also partnered with homebuilders like Lennar and forward-thinking utilities including GVEC and Bandera Electric Cooperative.

To support its DFW expansion, Base has opened an office and warehouse in Grapevine. The company now has 200-plus employees across Austin, its Bay Area engineering hub, and statewide field operations.

“Expanding into Dallas is a major milestone for Base—one we’ve been building towards since day one,” said Zach Dell, CEO and co-founder of Base Power. “This city reflects the scale and ambition behind our mission, and we couldn’t be more excited to finally serve the thousands of households that have been waiting for a better energy solution.”

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