Jan Stinson and Tom Williams are the son and daughter of the late Oscar Williams, who had founded Stinson Manufacturing with Truman Stinson in 1951, a couple of years after Truman Stinson had developed a commercial scaffold plank. ![]() About four and a half years ago, he says, they bought out the ownership interest of Jans brother, Tom Williams, who also formerly was president of TNT United Truck Lines here. Were always looking for new products to sell, and were also looking for new products to manufacture, as a way to keep the company growing amid that rising global competition, he says.īoots and his wife, Jan, own Stinson. Its going to be a big challenge, looking at what comes in from overseas, Boots says. Survival in this market is going to be a little touchy, I think, for a lot of companies. I think were just starting to see this overseas competition coming in, but the imported products appear generally to be of good quality, and theyre putting price-point pressure on domestic manufacturers, he says. Longer term, though, he says hes concerned about escalating competition from manufacturers in Far East countries, China in particular. Although its sales have tended to follow the ups and downs of the housing market, he says, I dont think the lower interest rates have really translated into more business for us.Ī quick end to the war in Iraq hopefully would trigger the beginnings of an economic resurgence, which would be good for Stinsons sales, Boots says. Back then, the companys annual sales were about $2 million, and Bootswhile preferring not to be specificsays theyve grown by about one-third since then.īecause a big part of the companys sales are tied to the national construction trade, it has felt the sting of the U.S. The company employs as many as 20 people during peak construction season, which is up about five people from a decade ago. Stinsons products are used by building, remodeling, and painting contractors, and other professionals from electricians to maintenance workers, as well as consumers. Weve expanded our lines quite a bit, Boots says. In addition to platform-related products, the company makes loading ramps, serves as a distributor for Cuprum brand ladders made in Mexico, and sells a range of ladder accessories and fall-protection equipment. Sycamore, in the industrial area just east of Freya Street, and operates satellite warehouses in Kent, Wash., and Coldwater, Mich. It occupies a 28,000-square-foot complex at 414 N. and Canada, and occasionally overseas, through a network of distributors. Stinson sells its products throughout the U.S. I think were hanging in there relatively well compared to where the market is, he says. ![]() ![]() Demand for its products has rebounded some this year, though, which has Steve Boots, the companys president, feeling a bit more upbeat. The small Spokane business posted its best sales year in 2000, then weathered a two-year sales decline that mirrored a softening of the national economy. Stinson Manufacturing Co., which makes scaffolding planks, decks, and ladder jacks used to form stable above-ground work platforms, has found that keeping its balance in a turbulent economy isnt easy.
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