After originally owning and operating a home inspection company, Jenn and Kris Disbrow came upon an opportunity to start Lifetime Exteriors when the recession rolled around in 2008.
“We found ourselves with a major dip in revenue,” Jenn said. “This is when the opportunity to start Lifetime Exteriors came about. After noticing how many homes had failing siding after being built incorrectly in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Kris decided to get his contractor’s license and give exterior remodeling a shot.”
Jenn and Kris are both owners of the business, with Jenn holding majority ownership and running the day-to-day operations of the company.
Lifetime Exteriors was officially formed in 2009, so the company is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. Jenn said they currently have 28 employees, down from their highest of 52 employees at one time.
“Our business grew extremely fast, hitting $15 million in revenue by our seventh year in business,” she said. “As you can imagine, this came with heavy growing pains and lots of learning. In the last 18 months, we have focused more on the importance of the culture of our company. This has led to less stress, more productive and happier employees, satisfied clients and better profit margins. We are only hiring the very best people and only taking on jobs that are a good fit for our company and our team.”
Both Jenn and Kris are Vancouver natives and have lived in the area their entire lives. Jenn said that at the beginning of Lifetime Exteriors’ extreme growth mode, they moved their office to the Portland Airport business area, but after a few years they began to feel disconnected from their community, so they moved their office back across the river.
“Being able to live and work in the same community is a blessing, and one we do not take for granted,” she said. “We love the fact that our daughter is growing up in Clark County as well. We really take pride in being old school Vancouverites and we are excited that we have been able to contribute locally.”
Jenn said that being a small family owned business makes them a lot more “down to earth.” She said they often attend as many local networking events as they can so that they can meet other business owners in the community and learn their stories, and any tips and tricks they may have learned along the way.
“We understand how much work it takes to grow a business and we have put in the blood, sweat and tears ourselves,” Jenn said. “We love to sponsor local events (golf tournaments especially) and are members of the BIA and the (Greater) Vancouver Chamber of Commerce. Having these local connections and resources that provide so much support is truly amazing.”
Lifetime Exteriors is located at 1100 NE 112th Ave., in Vancouver.
