A New Future
for a Family Legacy

The Determination of a Dream.

It was 1963, our hometown baseball team were the Colt .45’s, the University of Texas at Austin won its first national championship under the great Darrell K. Royal, the Oilers were “Houston’s Team” and Raymond “Butch” Wuensch just started a company that would become a family legacy and a major player in the maritime supply industry in the region.  

The origin story of Wuensch Sales Company is the story of the American dream. 

A story of coming from nothing, and beginning a business from the trunk of an El Camino… It’s the story of Raymond and Opal, their vision, their children, and the community that helped create and establish Wuensch Sales Company.  Raymond and Opal worked together for everything they had. Raymond, the child of poor immigrants, was determined to create a decent life for his growing family. WSC was more than a business idea for Raymond and Opal, it was a way to survive.

Through the next six decades, the family has expanded the company, become an established pillar in Houston’s East End, and weathered every storm of life and in the industry as a family business. WSC has seen an ever-changing demographic and thrived under the leadership of Bobby Wuensch and Maureen Wuensch Varnes after Raymond’s retirement. There have been changes and upheaval, loss and celebration.

But through it all, the Wuensch family and team have maintained the original WSC vision: Quality and Service First.

The Day It All Changed.

A call came one Sunday afternoon. The warehouse was on fire.

The family and WSC team rushed there to find much of the warehouse destroyed.  In the stunned silence, you could hear the building hissing from the deluge of water used to douse the flames. Disbelief was the overwhelming feeling.  It was June 27th, 2021 and WSC had just made it through year one of the Global Pandemic. It had taken some creative problem solving, and a steel will to continue to serve our customers when supply chains, transportation, logistics– when absolutely everything in our world had changed. And now, this. 

There was a decision to be made.

Would this break a nearly 60 year legacy, or would we use the same strength and determination that Raymond and Opal used to build WSC from nothing, to now rebuild it from the ashes? The answer was clear. Sleeves were rolled up, and the clean-up work began. We look back on that moment, and the days after with great pride. Despite working in chaos, debris and constant change, our team ensured there was zero downtime for our customers. WSC had to rethink everything, while remembering the tenets that made us the family business and global company we are today: honesty, integrity, service, and loyalty to both our clients, and community.

And Now… We Celebrate!

There are times in life when you can clearly see the crossroads. When you can choose to be stuck, or to move forward. We have been in this community and this industry while the world, and city changed around us. Would the fire be an obstacle to success or a catalyst for change? WSC chose to carve a new future, while holding tight to the values and traditions of our past. 

As we enter 2023, our 60th year in business, we have much to be proud of and thankful for. We can’t wait to show you our vision for the decades ahead. We have new and improved warehouse space, systems and offices and future plans for business events, a retail space, and reintroducing WSC to our East End community; the future for WSC is looking bright!  

We are so grateful to our team who have shown such tenacity during adversity, and to our family history that have brought us to this moment. To our customers and vendors, we simply would not be here had you not shown the same loyalty and resilience towards us. We could not be more thankful to our Houston community for your support throughout the years. We plan to celebrate with all of you all year long! Stay tuned here for details on upcoming parties, events, and big reveals.