Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE: AYI; “Company”), a market leader in innovative energy-efficient lighting, controls and daylighting solutions, is proud to announce that it was selected as the IMARK Group’s (“IMARK”) 2011 “Supplier of the Year” and received the award at IMARK’s Annual Meeting. This is the second consecutive year that Acuity Brands has been awarded this distinction by IMARK members, and is representative of the hard work and added value that has been provided over the past 12 months. The Company’s collective efforts have been recognized by the key distributor members that make up the IMARK Group.
 
As a co-operative of distributors for Acuity Brands products, IMARK represents more than 2,000 distributor locations. The award winner was selected by IMARK’s more than 1,100 member companies.  Members used the following criteria when rating preferred suppliers: annual sales growth and overall performance, marketing support for IMARK programs, new product promotion and communication activities, IMARK member training through IMARK University, and creative efforts to serve new IMARK members.
 
Bob Smith, President of IMARK, said, “Our membership was very pleased to once again announce Acuity Brands as the Supplier of the Year. The Company continues to demonstrate outstanding support for our membership through all of the IMARK Marketing Programs. We are proud of our affiliation with Acuity Brands and the award is greatly deserved.”
 
“The quality and expertise of Acuity Brands’ distribution network is unrivaled in the lighting industry,” said Geoff Marlow, Acuity Brands Lighting Senior Vice President, Sales and Channel Management. “We are partnered for achievement with IMARK's membership to align, add value, provide complete solutions, and win in the market servicing our shared customers.  It is indeed honored recognition when the members of IMARK, 1,100 strong, award Acuity Brands the distinction of Supplier of the Year.  We look forward to continuing to exceed the expectations of our IMARK partners each and every year,” Marlow added.
 
For additional information, please visit Acuity Brands and the IMARK Group online.
 
About Acuity Brands
Acuity Brands, Inc. is a North American market leader and one of the world’s leading providers of luminaires, lighting control systems and related products and services with fiscal year 2011 net sales of $1.8 billion. The Company’s lighting and system control product lines include Lithonia Lighting®, Holophane®, Peerless®, Mark Architectural Lighting™, Hydrel®, American Electric Lighting®, Gotham®, Carandini®, RELOC®, Antique Street Lamps™, Tersen®, Winona® Lighting, Syner¬gy® Lighting Controls, Sensor Switch®, Lighting Control & Design™, Dark to Light®, ROAM®, Sunoptics®,  acculamp™ and Healthcare Lighting®. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Acuity Brands employs ap¬proximately 6,000 associates and has operations throughout North America, Europe and Asia.
 
About The IMARK Group
IMARK GROUP, Inc. is a member-owned marketing group made up of over 1,100 independently owned electrical distributors throughout the United States. Our membership includes over 70 members in the Top 200 largest distributors in the country. Member companies serve their local customers from over 2,000 branch locations. With over $15 billion in combined sales, IMARK Group is the largest member owned, member governed cooperative in the US electrical industry. IMARK members are market leading companies serving the needs of electrical contractors, industrial and institutional MRO customers, electric utilities and other customer types throughout the country. At the heart of IMARK's success is its relationship with over 100 of the electrical industry's leading manufacturers and service providers. IMARK members work closely with these companies to satisfy end customers while members and suppliers maximize profitability, increase market share, and strengthen business relationships.
 
IMARK Group, Inc. is headquartered in Bowie, Maryland and was founded on February 1, 1996 as the result of a merger between The Independent Electrical Distributors Group (TIED) and Western Independent Electrical Distributors (WIED). In January 2009, IMARK Group merged with the Equity/EDN marketing group. Moving forward, IMARK Group will be a haven for high quality electrical distributors that intend to maintain their independence and enjoy high quality relationships with the electrical industry’s leading manufacturers. One of the largest independent marketing cooperatives in the United States, IMARK Group is an associate member of the National Association of Electrical Distributors and the National Cooperative Business Association.