DSG recently announced the opening of its newest location in Butte, Montana. The new 60,000-square-foot facility provides a strategic location with access from Interstate 15/North & South and Interstate 90/East & West. DSG is a Midwest-based independent wholesale distributor that supplies a broad range of products and solutions from manufacturers to professionals in the electrical, plumbing, HVAC, communications, utility, automation, waterworks and onsite sewer and well industries.
Having served the Butte market for over 30 years, this development represents a significant step in DSG’s commitment to customer service. The new facility will continue to serve local customers in Butte and will be a distribution center for all Montana DSG locations — Billings, Bozeman, Great Falls, Helena, Kalispell, and Missoula.

“We’re thrilled to celebrate the opening of our new Butte, Montana location,” said Paul Kennedy, CEO and President of DSG. “This growth is a testament to our commitment to better serve our customers and communities by expanding our product and service offerings in growing regions in our footprint.”
With this enhanced capacity, they will better serve customers in electrical, plumbing, HVAC, communications, utility, automation and waterworks, reinforcing their role as a trusted partner in their success.
The Montana opening follows DSG opening two new locations and relocating a third in September. The new facilities are in Box Elder, SD, and Spirit Lake, IA, while the relocation involves a move to a larger building in Grand Rapids, MI. This expansion brings DSG’s total number of locations to 57 across eight states.
Federal Grants To Help Montana Businesses and Communities Flourish
A total of $900,000 of federal grant funding is now available to help small Montana businesses accelerate and grow international sales. The U.S. Small Business Administration funding is administered through Commerce’s State Trade Expansion Program.
“Commerce’s STEP grant makes world-wide markets more accessible to Montana’s small businesses,” said Paul Green, Director of the Montana Department of Commerce. “Since 2011, Commerce’s efforts through the STEP grant have produced a return on investment to Montana of $1.2 billion.”
Since 2011, Montana has received $6.6 million in STEP grant funding from the SBA, matched it with $2.2 million in state funds, and awarded over 1,000 grants supporting 1,800 jobs for a return on investment of $1.2 billion. Eligible Montana exporters can apply for 50% reimbursement of up to $10,000 for eligible marketing activities, like trade show exhibition, market research and U.S. commercial service programs and foreign language translation. Other eligible marketing activities include international compliance testing, intellectual property protection, digital marketing and travel stipends. Applicants may receive up to $30,000 in STEP awards per year.

“Many Montana companies have tried out new international markets or implemented new export marketing plans because of the STEP grant,” said Angelyn DeYoung, International Trade Manager of Commerce’s Export MT Program. “When Montana companies export, they bring in new money to the state, increase their sales and diversify their markets.”
In 2023, Montana exported $3.3 billion of products, including the top-exported products such as cereals, mineral fuel, inorganic chemicals, meat and industrial machinery. The top countries that Montana companies export to are Canada, Mexico, Korea, Japan and China.
Earlier this year, Golden Helix, a biotechnology company in Bozeman, received STEP grant funds to participate in international trade shows and trade missions, at which they promoted their healthcare software, resulting in sales to new international markets and increased exports. “This was a great way to test the waters of a show we had not been to before to see how it will impact our sales and brand internationally. Every assistance program offered has been valuable,” said Andreas Scherer, President and CEO of Golden Helix.
The current amount of available grant funding, the fourth highest amount in the nation, is expected to assist an estimated 216 exporters with international sales activities and training and contribute approximately $10.3 million in total export sales.