NEW ON THE BUSINESS SCENE: CAPE COMPANY EXPANDING

Cape Electrical Supply Inc., 325 Christine St., has acquired T-B-N Electrical Supply Co. of West Plains.

The acquisition gives Cape Electrical Supply, a full-line distributor of electrical products for industrial, commercial and residential use, its ninth location in a three-state area.

Cape Electrical Supply, founded in 1953, has branch operations at Sikeston, Poplar Bluff, Farmington, Arnold, Marion, Ill., and Paducah, Ky. The company also operates a lighting showroom, The Lighting Center, adjacent to its Cape Girardeau store.

"We're excited to enter the West Plains market," said Allen Toole, president of Cape Electrical Supply. "T-B-N is a natural fit with our growth plans, both geographically and with the key product lines it represents."

T-B-N opened in 1960 and has been a market leader in the West Plains area 35 years. Stanley Taylor, president of T-B-N, will remain with the company and be responsible for the overall operations in West Plains.

The name, T-B-N, is representative of that area's three major lakes -- Table Rock, Bull Shoals and Norfork. The company will retain the T-B-N name.

West Plains, said Toole, was recently listed in Fortune Magazine's "100 Best Cities in America to Live In," and has become one of South Central Missouri's fastest-growing areas.