John Holt Brings His Family’s Legacy of Electrical Services Into Its Fourth Generation and Third Century
Bringing A Powerful Tradition of Service To Washington, D.C, Maryland and Virginia, The President of Holt Electrical Contractors, Inc. Has Helmed Its Residential Division Since 1990
Washington, DC – November 2, 2015 – While serving from 15-20,000 active customers in the Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia areas at any given juncture, John Holt, President of Holt Electrical Contractors, Inc., takes care of issues related to his team of master electricians and professional electrical technicians, attends to the details of his contracts and deals with customer service issues as the head (for the past 25 years) of the company’s residential division.
In addition to the high level expertise provided by his electricians and staff and a firm commitment to quality installations and dependable services, the Gaithersburg based executive takes pride in the fact that he is carrying on a powerful legacy of a true family run organization. His brother Paul is department head of the commercial division, while their father James, a master electrician, continues to focus on selling and servicing generators and designing and building systems.
James, who took over the business from his father (John’s grandfather) Carroll Holt for several decades starting in the early 70s, was the namesake of James G. Holt Electrical Contractors, Inc. – the name the company held until the early 90’s. James was responsible for diversifying its services to include commercial and residential customers and generator sales. James was also the IEC Chesapeake (Independent Electrical Contractors Association in 2012-2013 and currently serves on the Montgomery County, Maryland Electrical Board.
Other Holt family members are longtime employees of the company as well, including John’s mother. “I love coming to work every day and seeing my parents, brother and brother in law,” John says. “So many people go months, even years, without seeing their family members. But the family atmosphere we have created here extends to our beloved employees. Many of the guys I work with in our service group have been here anywhere from 24 to 40 years and we consider them extended family members. Their longevity is a tribute to the culture of our company.”
In addition to providing customers with state of the art customer service, John (along with Paul) has the great privilege of bringing the Holt Family’s legacy of electrical services into its fourth generation and third century. James Holt’s grandfather Frank was involved in the laying of underground lines and bringing electricity to street lights and homes in D.C. in the late 1800s; research shows that the Edison Electric public utility conversions from gas started in 1881 and the second phase via Pepco was in 1896. Though John cannot be specific of the dates of his grandfather’s involvement, the August 2013 listing for Holt Electrical Contractors, Inc. in Washingtonian’s “Contractors You Can Trust” said that the family has been in the electrical business since 1898.
Over the years, John has helped build Holt Electrical Contractors’ reputation as a powerful resource whose influence extends beyond its growing core area. Its generators division has been called to go into hurricane devastated areas, including the New Jersey area impacted by Superstorm Sandy in 2012, Delaware, West Virginia and North Carolina. Holt’s emphasis on training and the vast expertise of its team earns them many referrals from other electrical contractors who lack the resources to complete certain jobs.
According to John, one of the key elements that has kept Holt thriving well into the 21st Century has been making sure those resources keep pace with rapidly emerging technologies. “We are always keeping an eye towards the next big thing coming down the pike that will involve major electrical work. Electric cars are the latest growing trend, whose sales have almost tripled in the past two years compared to ten years ago. For both commercial and residential customers, solar panels and energy management systems are other big things that represent the next phase of the electrical business.”
A foundational part of Holt Electrical Contractors, Inc.’s customer service aesthetic is their 24-hour emergency hotline, with real live human beings that are knowledgeable about various issues – most likely, a member of the Holt family. They are there to help and, if need be, to connect the customer in crisis to on-call technicians at any time of day or night.