McBride & Son Homes building on success

IF THERE IS A SLOWDOWN IN THE HOUSING MARKET, RICK SULLIVAN AND JOHN rmann of McBride & Son Companies aren't overly concerned. As chairman and CEO respectively of the region's largest homebuilder, Sullivan and Eilermann say they are ready for whatever the market brings.

Eilermann has even adopted a mantra for the organization: "We have chosen not to participate in any downturn."

The numbers for McBride & Son Companies certainly support their enthusiasm with sales up by 20 percent and plans to expand into more markets. This year marks the company's 60th year in business, and McBride's homebuilding companies are on track to build 2,100 homes in five different cities, with revenues of $600 million.

In 2005, a new partnership was announced, with Sullivan turning over the day-to-day reigns of the organization to Eilermann. Under the new partnership, Sullivan wit[ take a less active role at McBride and will, focus on more civic and charitable endeavors. As CEO, Eilermann will be responsible for strategic planning and implementation.

Sullivan and Eilermann have a have had a strong relationship and friendship at McBride for the past 20 years. Sitting in their headquarters in the booming Chesterfield Valley, they remember how their offices were under water in the flood of 1993. They chose to stay and rebuild.

They agree that many factors have contributed to the success of the company.

"Our strategy has been to sell great homes in great locations at a great value," Eilermann explains.

Sullivan adds, "We like to create neighborhoods and communities, not just build houses."

Its employee-owned status, a careful strategy of steady growth through expansion into new markets, is at the forefront. But at its core, it's the way McBride & Son Companies manages each division that sets it apart. Each section of the business, down to the community Level, is treated like a separate, entrepreneurial company.

Today, McBride & Son Companies is divided into three core businesses:

McBride Homes, Vantage Homes and Builders Bloc.

McBride Homes is the largest division, with offices located in St. Louis, St. Charles, Louisville, Kansas City and Atlanta; McBride has grown into a top 40 builder in the U.S. and is ranked in the top 20 privately-held builders in the nation.

The company builds a diverse range of homes priced from $99,000 to $800,000. McBride builds everything from townhomes, condos, cottage homes, row homes, and single-family homes. The Land Development arm of the company builds master-planned communities, including the company's largest project to date WingHaven in O'Fallon, Mo.

McBride's Vantage Homes is a residential builder and developer of new home communities. Based in O'Fallon, Mo., this division has built more than 2,500 homes throughout St. Charles County, Southwestern Illinois and Kansas City since 1993.

Builders Bloc Contracting was founded in 1946 and provides carpentry, concrete foundations, dry wall and construction work not only for homes built by McBride Homes and Vantage Homes, but also for other builders as well. This division employs over 1,200 craftsmen in St. Louis, Chicago, Kansas City and Southwestern Illinois.

Regional expansion has been a big factor in the growth of the company Sullivan says. In 1987, McBride was the first St. Louis-based homebuilder to start building in a big way in Metro East.

"We really broke into Metro East before other St. Louis based builders," says Sullivan. "Today it's a huge growth area and we are building from Waterloo to Edwardsville, with each community being very distinct." Vantage Homes' is introducing nine new neighborhoods in Fairview Heights, Ill., with plans to enter Troy and Maryville, Ill. in 2007.

The company also builds in markets outside of the St. Louis region, with divisions in Louisville, Kansas City and Atlanta. McBride Homes is the 3rd largest homebuilder in both markets for Louisville and Kansas City.

In 1988, McBride & Son Companies' stock ownership plan was implemented and the company became fullyowned by its employees. That's when things really began to take off.

"Being an employee-owned homebuilding company is one of the biggest keys to our success, and really sets us apart, "Sullivan says.

Eilermann concurs, "It makes a huge difference. Customers know they are meeting with employee owners. Their success is our success." Eilermann adds that the company has an entrepreneurial culture where each company is fairly autonomous and managers are responsible for results of their individual division of the company.

At age 42, Eilermann is one of the youngest CEOs in the homebuilding industry. He started with McBride as an estimator fresh out of Missouri State University-or as Eilermann calls it "the Harvard of the Midwest"-and worked his way up to assistant project manager, general manager and vice president. In 1997, he was named president of McBride Homes.

The two are involved in numerous civic, professional and charitable organizations, and have both served as past presidents of the Homebuilders Association of Greater St. Louis. Sullivan serves on the board for Habitat for Humanity, the RCGA, and Lindenwood University, and is also very involved in a construction company incubator and a retail company incubator serving minority business. Eilermann is also active with a number of charities, including Cardinal Glennon and St. Patrick Center.