Jager Homes by Business in Calgary

Jager Homes Inc. | 65 Years | 1

Jager Homes Building Calgary communities for over 65 years By Mary Savage

floor joists to better service the North American market, and the following decades saw the continued growth in manufacturing, land development and homebuilding. By the early 2000s, the three divisions were sold and Jager Homes was re-established as its own identity under the Hon Group of Companies, a family-run business that has been involved in real estate and land development for decades.

More than Bricks and Mortar

What’s changed … what’s stayed the same Over the course of six decades, one of the most significant changes to affect the homebuilding industry is the rate at which the city has grown: it’s how the land is approved, developed and serviced today. The supply of land and exponential growth has led to regulations that have inherently affected this growth and development. Above image courtesy of Jager Homes “The realities of building a home today are completely different than they were in the 1950s, but along the way, we have adapted and we like to think we have adapted better than most,” he year was 1947. Mackenzie King was prime minister, the says Roland. Canadian Citizenship Act went into effect and it was the start Technology has changed the way houses are built. The materiof the Cold War. Technology welcomed the invention of the als are constructed and manufactured differently, and the houses transistor, the mobile phone and the instant camera. A loaf of bread are put together differently. The industry has specialized subcost about 13 cents, average annual wages were $2,850, and the trades and instant communication connects everyone – whether average cost of a new home in North America was about $6,600. they are on-site, en route or in the office. Closer to home, huge oil reserves were discovered in Leduc, When it comes to building materials, as an example, granite Alberta and Calgary quickly found itself at the centre of the ensuwas a significant upgrade 20 years ago. Today, granite is found in ing oil boom. Stampede Wrestling was established and the city’s almost every starter home in the city. “Technology has made the population was just over 100,000. delivery process much easier,” asserts Roland. “The global supply It was also in 1947 when Bill Jager started a small homebuildchain has tightened up and now we’re able to get products from ing business, Jager Homes Inc. Over six decades later, Jager is all over the world at the snap of a finger.” recognized as one of the oldest and most trusted names in WestDuring a recent conversation with one of Jager’s suppliers, ern Canada. And it would seem that Jager is as much a part of Roland recalls how they worked with homeowners 15 years ago Calgary’s history as the oil industry. to select fixtures. “When it came to faucets, there were two types Jager has built over 13,000 homes in Calgary and the surround– Delta or Moen – and they came with a chrome or pewter finish,” ing communities, and they have worked in every quadrant of the remarks Roland. city. Jager was one of the first companies to work with the city “Today, that same supplier carries 220,000 in residential land development – giving rise to products in his warehouse. Access to that many many of Calgary’s early communities. They have choices has really changed the way we do businot only watched the skyline grow, they have ness,” he adds. “We can compete with any contributed to the growth and witnessed hunbuilder in the world with respect to product and dreds of city milestones. design – and it’s because we live in a global Jager, along with other Calgary pioneer marketplace.” homebuilders, fostered a vision to develop these Beyond the fixtures, advanced communicacommunities and that history speaks to Jager’s tion has given rise to a more educated consumer success. “Jager has been successful because of and Roland believes this is another positive the foundation that was laid 65 years ago,” says aspect of adapting to change. Joe Roland, general manager, Jager Homes. “It’s “People are very knowledgeable with respect the foundation of hard work, trust, looking for to property values and building materials. There’s opportunities, seizing those opportunities and a lot more information in the consumer’s hands not being afraid of the growth.” and sometimes the availability of information is During the 1970s, Jager expanded its Calgary perceived as a bad thing, but having that inforoperation to Ontario where they manufactured Joe Roland, General Manager mation actually makes us better,” he says. Photo by Mary Savage

Jager Homes Inc. | 65 Years | 2

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Jager Homes Inc. | 65 Years | 3

And as the consumer becomes more educated, Roland feels there’s less ambiguity when it comes to the homebuilding process. “The end result sees a better product, a better experience and better communication.” In 65 years, one thing has remained the same: people want value for their money – period. It matters not if someone paid $20,000 for a house in the 1960s or if they paid $800,000 in today’s market. It’s still the same principle and people still ask, “What am I getting for my money?” “Building a home is a financial investment, but it is also an emotional investment,” says Roland. “It’s where we raise our families, celebrate birthdays and the holidays. It’s where our kids lose their first tooth and it’s the place we call home – every day. It’s not just bricks and mortar.”

A Higher Standard in Homebuilding Decades of passion and commitment

When Jager started building homes, originally they bought the developed lots from the city. They ran a small crew, built a house and moved on to the next lot. When Jager and like-minded businesses realized they needed more land to run a more profitable business,

they purchased larger sections and started developing communities. As the communities started to take shape, forward thinking found the people at Jager developing a concept called an ‘I-joist’ – once again illustrating an example of how to build a better home. And it’s this type of forward thinking that has culminated the higher standards in homebuilding today. “In the Calgary area, the quality of homebuilders and construction is much higher than most of what I’ve seen in many North American cities. We hold ourselves to a slightly different work ethic. We have a great national and provincial building code, excellent associations and great leadership that comes from many of these founding companies that have been around for decades,” says Roland. “When you look around Calgary and as it relates to our industry, there are a lot of single-family homebuilders that have been in Calgary for over 30 years. I attribute that longevity to our historically strong economy, but there’s also a passion among the local builders. There is an overall belief within the industry that we can always build better,” he adds.

Bridging the Decades Building for generations

When you look at any successful long-term business, the most important assets are found among the people. And in an industry where people are known to cross the street for an extra buck or two, it’s a tall order to maintain relations with excellent tradespeople – decade after decade. Inside the Jager office, you will find people who have been committed to the company for over 30 years and Roland attributes the company’s success to this stability. Stu Garrioch has been building Jager foundations for over 28 years; Dennis Lidstone, service manager, has been with Jager for over 24 years; and Mike D’Agnillo, assistant superintendent, has been with the company for over 44 years. These men represent a cornerstone in the Jager family and their unwavering commitment to workmanship has helped build the Jager brand. “Calgary has an excellent talent pool and labour base, and Jager has been very fortunate in this arena. We have framers that have been with us for 25 years and most of our finishing carpenters have

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worked with us for over a decade,” explains Roland. “We are proud of the longevity with our employees and the partnerships we have forged with our subtrades,” he says. “We are now starting to work with second-generation subtrades and they are all part of the Jager family.” Likewise, Jager is building for the second and third generation of customers. “People hire us to build their home because their grandmother lives in Jager Home or they know someone who worked for Jager,” notes Roland. “We bring a lot of expertise to any project because of our history. Our collective experience, which includes our ownership, helps us to develop a different vision,” he says. “We also have to meet the challenges associated with city growth. In older cities like New York and Boston, they have met many of these challenges – they are hundreds of years old. Calgary is still a young city and there are challenges that come with our city’s age and unique qualities,” he adds. In addition to growth, there are social and environmental challenges. “Values are changing toward energy consumption and consumables, and we are trying to bridge that gap,” he notes. “As a society, we are realizing that resources are finite, so we have to figure

out how to live with less – consuming less energy, better utilization of the land, building better homes and meeting future challenges.”

Looking Forward When Roland pauses to reflect on Jager’s success, he concludes it was due to a combination of factors. “We built the business on core values that were established 65 years ago, but we also happen to be in the right geographical location,” he says. “We are blessed with natural resources, Alberta is energy-rich and Calgary is a young city with the right demographics.” As Jager Homes celebrates 65 years in business, they pause from their workday to extend a note of gratitude to all the business partners, customers, suppliers, tradespeople and employees who have contributed to their success; they couldn’t have achieved this milestone without that support. •

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