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Building on a legacy

Building on the Brand Vaughan foundation

Brand Vaughan Lumber wasn’t shopping its business around this past year.

But in recent years, the pro dealer built a relationship with US LBM CEO L.T. Gibson and Jim Hooper, US LBM senior vice president of mergers and acquisitions.

“We have a vision for how our brand can grow and the opportunity to partner with an organization that has the same mission for people and values along with the resources and desire to grow in a sustainable way opened up further conversations,” says Jon Vaughan, regional vice president at US LBM and former owner, CEO and president of Brand Vaughan Lumber.

A desire to reinforce a seven-decade history serving the metro Atlanta market, along with aspirations of future growth, eventually led the dealer to join the US LBM family of companies.

“We see the opportunity to grow the business, grow our people, grow in innovation, and have the capital to scale and grow,” Vaughan told HBSDealer.

With about 250 employees, Brand Vaughan sells framing lumber, engineered wood products, trusses, roofing, siding, windows and exterior doors, interior doors and trim, metal products, and concrete accessories. The business also provides installed services for structural framing, siding, windows and doors, and interior doors and trim.

US LBM is also proud of the legacies of the companies it has acquired.

“Our model is to acquire market-leading businesses, so we see a lot of value locally in both the names customers know and trust,” Gibson says. “Ultimately, we’re one company and operate as such; however, some of these names have histories that go back more than a century and helped to build and establish this entire industry and are known far beyond their local area.”

But what about continuing these legacies and attracting new personnel to the industry? US LBM is increasingly leveraging its name as a national hiring brand, particularly to help attract newcomers to the industry. “We’re not looking to change our go-to-market strategy, and we are proud of our shared legacies," Whiteash explains. "But the attraction of joining a growing, national company and what we can offer through training, benefits, and more while maintaining that local connectivity and community presence is incredibly appealing to candidates from outside of the industry and new members of the workforce."

One of the areas US LBM has focused on is rebuilding the pipeline of leaders and creating the next generation of LBM management. US LBM continues to evaluate and try new approaches to recruiting and retaining top talent including targeted recruitment campaigns, utilizing tech in hiring and onboarding, bonuses, recognition, and advertisements.

The company also recently launched a trainee program in several markets, Lead US, providing recent hires the opportunity to learn through hands-on and classroom experiences and build a career in sales, management, logistics and supply chain.

But US LBM has found that what stands out in the modern workforce is company culture while making roles and environments more inviting for everyone.

“Over the past several years, we’ve also made a concerted effort to encourage and attract more women into the industry by raising awareness of the variety of career paths available and sharing success stories of the women of US LBM today,” Whiteash says. “Employees don’t want just a job, but a place where they can belong, and build and grow a career while doing rewarding work,” Whiteash adds. “We’re an inclusive and open culture — there are unlimited opportunities for everyone.”

Brand Vaughan Lumber joined the US LBM family of businesses this past summer.

Since joining US LBM, Vaughan says one of the parent company’s most impactful moves has been the ability to open a truss shop while providing expertise.

“That was something that was very needed for us, and US LBM immediately saw the opportunity to add that capability and invested,” Vaughan says. “That will make huge strides for our business.”

Additionally, US LBM has been invaluable in assisting Brand Vaughan through supply chain challenges.

“Being able to help other divisions with inventory through transfers, assessing the market and relating it to our inventory position, and creating a strategy to deal with supply disruptions going forward will be huge for our business,” Vaughan explains.

“We are one company. So when businesses join US LBM, that also gives new associates more opportunities to grow in their careers.” —Wendy Whiteash, chief human resources officer and exectutive VP, culture, US LBM

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