Reliance, Inc.

Is Reliance, Inc. publicly traded?
Yes. Reliance, Inc. trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker RS and is a component of the S&P MidCap 400 index. It has been public since its IPO on September 16, 1994.

Is Reliance, Inc. the same company as Reliance Industries?
No. Reliance, Inc. is the largest metals service center company in North America, based in Scottsdale, Arizona, and found at reliance.com. Reliance Industries Limited is a separate, much larger Indian conglomerate based in Mumbai and found at ril.com. The two companies are unrelated.

Who founded Reliance, Inc.?
Thomas J. Neilan founded the company on February 3, 1939, in Los Angeles, California, as a steel distribution business. It grew through branch expansion and acquisitions into the largest metals service center in North America.

What does Reliance, Inc. sell?
The company sells more than 100,000 metal products, including carbon steel, stainless steel, aluminum, alloy, brass, copper, and titanium. About 49% of orders include value-added processing such as cutting, slitting, or machining before delivery.

When did Reliance Steel & Aluminum become Reliance, Inc.?
The company changed its legal name from Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. to Reliance, Inc. in February 2024. Management said the new name better reflected a portfolio that had expanded beyond steel and aluminum.

Who is the CEO of Reliance, Inc.?
Karla Lewis is President and Chief Executive Officer. Arthur Ajemyan serves as Chief Financial Officer, and Stephen Koch serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

How many locations does Reliance have?
Reliance operates approximately 310 locations across 41 U.S. states and 10 countries, serving more than 125,000 customers. Approximately 40% of orders are delivered within 24 hours.

Thomas J. Neilan founded the company on February 3, 1939, in Los Angeles, California, as a steel distribution business. It grew with the postwar Southern California industrial economy, supplying metal to the region's manufacturers, construction firms, and defense contractors.

Through the second half of the twentieth century, Reliance expanded by opening branch service centers and buying regional distributors. The decentralized pattern it still uses took shape early: acquired businesses kept their local names, management teams, and customer relationships while gaining access to the parent's purchasing scale and inventory depth.

Reliance went public on the New York Stock Exchange on September 16, 1994. Public capital accelerated the acquisition program. Among the larger deals were the 2006 acquisition of Earle M. Jorgensen Company, one of the oldest names in U.S. metal distribution, and the 2013 purchase of Metals USA for approximately $1.1 billion, which added dozens of processing and distribution sites. Other acquisitions, including Continental Alloys & Services and Bralco Metals, filled geographic and product gaps.

The company moved its corporate headquarters from Los Angeles to Scottsdale, Arizona. By the 2020s it had completed dozens of acquisitions and built a footprint that no North American competitor matches.

In February 2024, the company changed its legal name from Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. to Reliance, Inc. Management said the shorter name better reflected a portfolio that had grown well beyond steel and aluminum distribution into processed products, specialty metals, and related services.

Fiscal 2025 produced record tons sold of 6.4 million and net sales of $14.29 billion, the strongest volume year in company history.

Reliance publishes annual sustainability reporting covering workplace safety, energy use at its service centers, and community programs. Metal distribution is inherently linked to recycling: steel and aluminum are among the most recycled materials in the industrial economy, and service centers return scrap to mills as part of normal operations.

The company is not a Certified B Corporation and holds no major third-party sustainability certifications. Most of its reported environmental and social metrics are self-disclosed.