Milestone during 50th anniversary

Stratford Homes workers produce company’s 11,000th modular home

Stratford Homes employees on Thursday celebrated completion of the company’s 11,000th modular home. It’s ironic that the 11,000th modular home came off the Stratford plant’s production line the same year the business is celebrating its 50th anniversary.

Joel Banks, president of Stratford Homes, said the company is in a unique position to have an impact on families who are living in their Stratford Home for decades or generations.

“It’s just a remarkable accomplishment to think that our company has touched 11,000 families and their dreams,” he said on Thursday afternoon in his office at Stratford Homes.

Banks said the 11,000th Stratford Home will go to builder Rick Lamarch of Integrity Custom Builders in Escanaba, Mich. Lamarch has built modular homes for over 25 years and has built nearly 600 Stratford Homes, 40 of which are on Mackinac Island. The modular home is four bedrooms and two bathrooms and it is 1,458 square feet. It will be shipped in October to the building site in Wilson, Mich.

Stratford Homes currently has 110 full-time employees at its Stratford production facility and office headquarters. The business also has three Stratford High School youth apprenticeship students.

Banks said it’s an amazing accomplishment for Stratford Homes to build its 11,000th modular home during the same year it’s celebrating 50 years in business.

“I just think it’s a reinforcement of what a unique and special company we are,” he said.

Stratford Homes held its 50th anniversary celebration on July 27. David Endy and Rob White, co-owners of Stratford Homes, spoke to attendees underneath a large tent outside the Stratford production plant about the business’s success during its 50 years of existence. Smith Bros. Meats of Colby catered a meal for attendees. There were also two grand door prizes awarded to attendees and a variety of themed basket raffles. Attendees also got a sneak peak at the new model home, the Tamarack chalet on the Stratford Homes’ property.

Company’s history

Co-owner David Endy provided the following history of Stratford Homes. Stratford Homes started in April of 1973 when a small group of local folks whose previous company had declared bankruptcy decided to try it again. They essentially moved across Highway 97 into the building where Stratford Homes is located today. Like their predecessor firm, their initial products were mobile homes but they decided to focus more on the double-wide segment of this market then the more competitive single-wide homes they had been building.

Early on, the company started to build a new line of modular homes, which although similar to their mobile home products, were built to the same codes that traditional site-built homes were built to. This proved to be a very good decision and within a few years of starting up, all production and sales activity had moved over to the modular home product lines.

Over the ensuing years, Stratford Homes continued to evolve within the modular home industry and today is one fo the top providers of custom modular homes in the upper Midwest market. Sales are made to independent builders predominantly located throughout the five-state area of Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Over the years, sales have been made as far east as Indiana and as far west as Montana and also across the border into Canada.

In 1987, the original owners of Stratford Homes decided the time was right to sell the business and the father/son duo of Bob and Rob White acquired the business. While the Whites lived in the Minneapolis area, they had acquired Steel King Industries in Stevens Point two years prior to acquiring Stratford Homes, so they had a familiarity with the central Wisconsin area and knew of the strong work ethic for which this area was known for.

In 1989, the corporate structure of the entity was changed to what is now Stratford Homes Limited Partnership (SHLP). In 1990, the founding president of Stratford Homes, Dean Weiland, retired and David Endy, who had recently joined the Whites, was given oversight responsibility for the business. Today, the ownership of SHLP is Rob White and Endy.

Throughout the 1990s, the business grew steadily and significantly and the plant was expanded to its current size of 125,000 square feet. Growth continued in the early 2000s and the company decided to open a second production facility in Chariton, Iowa, in 2001. With the continued increase in revenue, the company outgrew its office space and a new office was added in front of the existing building in 2005. By this time, total headcount had reached 250 employees spread between the two facilities.

By 2006, SHLP was hitting its peak just as the economic and housing recession started to seriously impact the housing market. By 2009, sales had fallen 70 percent and the company had to make the difficult decision to shut down the Iowa plant. By 2011, SHLP started to emerge from this difficult housing climate and has seen its sales grow steadily since then. For 2023, sales are projected to be up three times the low water mark hit in 2010 and employment in Stratford is back above 100.

Banks is proud to tell people about the history of Stratford Homes.

“I enjoy telling the Stratford Homes’ story because what underlies our success is the power of teamwork,” he said. “Through these trials and tribulations David (Endy) mentioned, a dedicated team of craftspersons and professionals has rallied around providing our homeowners with an exceptional new home-buying experience through an incredible network of builder partnerships. Whether an economic downturn, new technology or new competitors in our market, our team continues to find ways to succeed.”

“We are fortunate not to have to take on these challenges alone. A key component to our success has been our product suppliers, often going above and beyond to provide materials as well as solutions to the challenges we meet.”

“Celebrating a 50th anniversary is an exciting time. Reflecting on our past gives us tremendous confidence for our future. Knowing that, as a team, we will continue to confront challenges and learn and improve from our experiences to continue Stratford Homes’ legacy.”

Open house

Stratford Homes is holding a fall open house from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. this Saturday, Sept. 30, at its production facility located at 212501 STH 97 in Stratford. Attendees will be able to tour the four model homes, including the new Tamarack chalet model home, on the Stratford Homes’ property. There will be guided tours of Stratford Homes’ indoor construction facility and door prize drawings in recognition of the company’s 50th anniversary. People will also be able to see the 11,000th modular home.

The new Tamarack chalet model home will also be open for people to see during the Wausau Area Fall Parade of Homes on Oct. 19-21. People can purchase tickets at each of the home sites, which will give them entry into all six of the Fall Parade of Homes.

David Endy

Rob White