Who Are We?

The Story of Sidney Lee Welding Supply

established in 1968, is one of learning on the job and doing whatever it takes to do the job required. It is one of working hard, sacrificing, and pulling together as a family to make a dream come true. Sidney Lee’s belief in the entrepreneurial dream was tested when he risked the family’s livelihood to leave a well-paid job at Delta Airlines. Still, it was not a decision made lightly or without first testing the waters. At the close of his shift, Sidney would typically travel to the downtown Atlanta, GA, distributor’s location to fill whatever cylinders he needed refilling. While there, a chance comment from Sidney describing the need for a southern metro area distributor resulted in a business offer. Sidney Lee’s response of, “I’ll do it!” was all it took for the hardworking Lee to launch The Sidney Lee Company, later known as Sidney Lee Welding Supply. With a 1956 GMC truck, some rented cylinders, a few supplies, and a small list of customers located in the four small towns in that area, Lee was in business, working from his garage until 1983. At that point, Sidney moved to a new facility on the highway in Hampton, GA.

Moving to the Hampton location marked the first signs of growth that the company would see. Along with a small core group of seven or eight people, Sidney; his wife, Vivian; and their two sons, Zane and Steve, the company grew as they continued to learn new skills as the business required. Consolidations in the local market presented an opportunity for the company to open its first branch store in Conyers, Georgia, in the fall of 1994. Shortly after, they started filling argon in various mixes along with oxygen and carbon dioxide. The company also became a Miller Warranty Center. The Lees opened a store in Macon, Georgia, in 2005. One year later, under Vivian’s direction, they completed significant renovations to their original facility, adding new offices and a showroom. Shortly after, a new fill plant was built in Hampton. In 2012, a branch was opened in Douglasville, Georgia, along with several other acquisitions in the surrounding years that would lead to Sidney Lee Welding Supply expanding further in different markets, establishing divisions such as Easy CO2, a beverage gas enterprise. The last branch to open was strategically placed in Doraville, Georgia, and helps provide the company with complete coverage of the metropolitan Atlanta area.