After having been employed for numerous years by various suppliers in the livestock industry, in 1971 Willem K. Wentzel founded Impex in Hilversum, Holland. The first warehouse was in a farm building. In 1976 the company moved to Barneveld, the heart of the Dutch livestock industry. Due to the rapid growth of poultry and pig farming, Impex Barneveld BV quickly outgrew its location. In 1978 Impex was one of the first companies to build facilities in the new industrial area "De Harselaar" in Barneveld. These facilities were further enlarged with 4000 m² of assembly and warehouse area in 1986. To even better meet the international demand, its U.S. subsidiary, Impex Gainesville, Inc. in Gainesville, Georgia, was founded in 1988, and in 1989 Impex Gainesville, Inc. moved into its own facilities. In 1992 a second U.S. subsidiary was opened in Ft. Dodge, Iowa.