Every now and then it's nice to get a card from someone that updates you on their life - Facebook can get a little impersonal these days! This article is our letter to you informing you of all the fun progress we've made as well as our future business plans. Our clients make us who we are, so it's our pleasure to include you in our business as we grow. 

The Background:

For a little context, Aging In Place Builders, Inc. was officially started in 2008 by the original father-and-son duo of Bill and Mike LaBombard. Now, 2008 wasn't the best year for the economy, but the recession did start to shed light on the fact that housing and retirement plans are not untouchable rights. It was around this time that the earliest baby boomers were starting to hit retirement age (62-65), as well as starting to feel the burden of their aging parents (many of whom were in their 80's). This combination of needing a better retirement plan and needing to care for their parents finally started to change the negative stigma behind "Aging In Place." 

The Numbers: 

The company slowly grew as people became more comfortable with the concept of getting older - for a while clients didn't even like to have a lawn sign that said anything related to aging! Things started to really pick up in 2014/2015 as the recession-sting was wearing off and more Baby Boomers moved into retirement. Below are a couple statistics that we found interesting when looking at how much the business and overall concept has grown since then: 

• Since 2010 of AIP Builders, the company has grown revenue by over 400%
• In the last three years, the percentage of revenue from accessibility projects vs. non-accessibility has gone from 37% in 2016 to 72% in 2018  - showing an increased acceptance/need for the services we offer
• By nature, accessibility projects are smaller than those of a Home Builder or Kitchen Remodeler. However, our average project size has gone from $27,000 to $34,000 in just three years - showing an increase in the size/scope required for the average accessibility projects. 

The Personnel: 

Since that original father-and-son duo started, it became clear that more highly-skilled people were needed to make this company a success. Some folks came and went, but a couple noteworthy people have stayed with us and been rock-stars throughout the years: 

Paul Simpson joined early on as a family member with decades of experience. He can fix just about anything and always builds with the same quality standard that AIP demands. Since starting with AIP, Paul has become our go-to carpenter for any project big or small - you can usually see him driving the AIP Van shown below. 

Josh Mathiau joined a couple years after the company started and has been a pillar of hard-work, friendliness, and trust that our clients have learned to expect. He has grown tremendously as a carpenter, a customer service rep. and a project manager. In 2019 Josh was promoted to Project Foreman where he will be increasingly responsible for managing jobsites and overall project operations. 

Jeff LaBombard joined the family business as a partner in late 2015 when the business was really starting to pick up speed. His business background helped bring some organization and strategic direction to the team.

The Branding: 

Our trucks/signs continue to be one of our best business promotions, however some things have changed since many of you have worked with us. Over the years we've swapped out and added vehicles, so keep an eye out for us - we always appreciate a beep/wave!

We've also updated our project signs to something that is a little more recognizable - keep an eye out for these as well!

In addition to the new looks, below is our latest Radio Ad that you can listen to here, or on The River 93.9.

The Future of AIP Builders: 

We have no plans of slowing down because there are still MANY more people who need our help - now and in the future as we age. Below are a couple initiatives we're working on to better serve our customers - feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments section if you would like to see us explore anything else: 

• Management Model - we're experts in the areas of accessibility and building. However, we only have so many resources (aka, skilled labor!), so we're partnering with more highly-reputable subcontractors that will uphold our high quality standards while we manage the projects from start to finish. This will help us get to more projects and complete them in a more efficient manner - there's nothing worse than being on a waitlist for an accessibility project! We can find great builders to help us, but it's very hard to find accessibility experts - we plan to train from within for this. 
• New Office/Showroom - we're starting to outgrow our home-office roots (there's only so many shower units you can store in your back yard...). Our goal in the near future is to find an operations headquarters that also has an office/showroom for our clients to come interact with the accessibility products that we're recommending. And you better believe it will be handicap accessible!
• New Accessible Homes/Apartments - Western Mass is not immune to the affordable housing shortage that we're seeing in this country. As people head into retirement without a solid financial foundation, they may want to or be required to downsize their large homes to something more economical (and easier to clean!). We think our expertise can help create some amazing living situations for those in need - whether it be new smaller/accessible homes, or accessible apartments. 
• New Personnel - with our projected growth and a new marketing plan, we're going to need more help. The Management Model above will help us achieve more with less, but we're going to be looking for amazing people to help with sales/estimating, project management, and a handful of other business-related tasks. If you know anyone who is a rock star and would be a good fit with our accessibility mission, feel free to connect us!

We've learned a lot over the years, but the main truth that continues to ring true is that our clients are our most important asset. It's important to include the people we've met in our journey because you're along for the ride as well. We hope that you enjoyed hearing a little bit more about our company and can start to feel like one of the family!

Be sure to leave a comment below or Contact Us for any questions or comments.