News / Champion
Champion Reaches 55-Year Milestone, Builds Unprecedented 1.7 Million Homes
TROY, Mich., Sept. 26, 2008 - Champion Homes, a leader in factory-built housing, celebrates two significant milestones in its long-established history: its 55th anniversary of building and supplying factory-built homes, and the announcement today that it had reached an unprecedented 1.7 million homes built as of June.
"When our Company was established in 1953, I don't think anyone could have imagined that we would achieve these milestones," said Bill Griffiths, chairman, president and CEO of Champion Enterprises. "We are grateful to have achieved them and hope that in the future they are considered stepping stones, as we are committed to continue as a leader in the manufactured housing industry."
During its decades of success, the Company has consistently led the industry in developing improved construction processes and bringing innovative, consumer-oriented products to the factory-built housing market:
- In the 1970s, the Company was the first in the industry to eliminate mechanical fasteners for ceiling panels, offer a solar furnace option, and use sheetrock wall paneling instead of luan.
- In the 1980s and 1990s, Champion expanded its product offerings and significantly increased consumer choice in home plans and appointments.
- Recognizing the important role the Internet would play in a homebuyer's search and purchase decision, the Company introduced the Champion Home Center program in 2000. A major component of the program was to provide multiple websites where consumers searching for a home could find more information about available Champion homes and the retailers who could help them achieve homeownership.
- In 2002, Champion was one of the first in the industry to offer ENERGY STAR ® certified manufactured homes nationwide. In recognition, the Company received the U.S Environmental Protection Agency's ENERGY STAR ® Partner of the Year award.
- In more recent years, the Company introduced the hugely successful and extensively-copied "Ultimate Kitchen." Introduced in 2004, Champion homebuyers have since purchased over 9,000 homes with the Ultimate Kitchen. The Company followed up in 2006 with its Suite Retreat spa bath, the first luxurious master bath option of its kind in the factory-built housing industry.
"We're proud and honored that when it came time to make a home purchase decision, 1.7 million times the choice was Champion," said Grover Tarlton, Champion's vice-president, marketing. "Continuing to earn that "decision" on a daily basis is our number one Company objective, driving ongoing product improvement, higher quality and innovation. We've achieved two significant milestones this year, but our view is to the future, and more homebuyers choosing Champion."
Champion Then and Now
In 1953, the Company was founded as Champion Home Builders Co. in Dryden, Mich., by Henry E. George and Walter W. Clark. Champion went public in 1964, when it was listed on the American, Detroit, Midwest and Pacific Stock Exchanges. From the 1960s to the 1990s, the Company grew, opening new facilities and acquiring factory-built housing companies in the U.S. and Canada, while moving away from the recreational vehicle industry. In 1995, Champion moved to the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and on December 20, 2005, Chairman, president and CEO Bill Griffiths rang the NYSE closing bell to celebrate Champion's ten-year anniversary trading on the exchange. Today, Champion operates 33 manufacturing facilities in North America and the United Kingdom. The Champion family of builders produces manufactured and modular homes, as well as modular buildings for government and commercial applications.
"Our longevity and sales success are a tribute to the visionaries who started the Company and the employees who built and continue to grow it," concluded Griffiths. "It's also an acknowledgement of the retailer support we have received over the years and the large number of homebuyers who trusted Champion with one of life's most important decisions, the purchase of their home."
