By Michelle Keller
Milwaukee, WI–Bliffert Lumber & Hardware, based here, is a retail lumberyard that has been serving contractors and homeowners in southeastern Wisconsin for over 100 years.
With operations in Milwaukee, Germantown, Waukesha, Oak Creek, Cudahy, and Sturtevant, WI, Bliffert Lumber & Hardware carries treated lumber, windows and doors, moulding, decking, cabinets, construction lumber and plywood, engineered wood products, finished hardwood and plywood, pattern stock, sheet goods, and siding and trim boards.
The company handles approximately 10 million board feet annually and inventories between 1 to 2 million at all times. Species available include Douglas Fir, Spruce, Eastern White Pine, Engelmann Spruce, Hemlock, White Fir and Southern Yellow Pine.
Bliffert Lumber & Hardware, based in Milwaukee, is a source for quality Softwood and other building materials
Since incorporation in 1904, the company has helped the community grow by supplying building materials to hospitals, stadiums and new homes, as well as a variety of other projects.
In the 1880s, Christian Meckelberg established North Side Lumber and Fuel Co., which operates today as Bliffert Lumber & Hardware. According to the company website, it was a staple of the near-northside community. Many homes built in the area of North Avenue, Holton Street, and Chambers Street were supplied with lumber, nails, windows, roofing material, and more from North Side Lumber, which not only stocked building materials but also sold millwork and manufactured flooring along with Softwood and hardwood lumber. Lumber was from North American and some South American forests. It also provided the fuel (eastern anthracite coal) for homes and businesses of the area to cook, keep warm, and operate steam boiler-driven machinery.
J.P. Bliffert married the daughter of the owner of North Side Lumber and Fuel Co., then changed the company’s name after World War I to reflect his ownership.
In those days coal and lumber delivery to the distributors was done by a rail spur that fed the business from the Milwaukee Road’s northbound City Line. In 1904, the business was finally incorporated and the name North Side Lumber & Fuel Company became official. During that time, young J.P. Bliffert came to work for the company and eventually married the daughter of the owner. J.P. Bliffert took on more responsibility over time and managed the location for several years under the North Side Lumber name.
The company name was changed to reflect Bliffert ownership shortly after World War I, under which it still operates today. Bliffert Lumber & Hardware is currently run by vice president and fifth-generation family member Eli Bliffert. Continuing the family-owned and operated tradition, Bliffert said the company goal is to make sure that the personal service shows at each of the seven locations. “All seven locations are unique,” he said. “Each location serves its own specific type of customers and each manager has his or her own strategy of how to obtain repeat business.”
Bliffert Lumber & Hardware was incorporated in 1904, but it actually dates back to the 1880s, when it was called North Side Lumber and Fuel Co. The company’s logo was updated in 2015 to reflect the original hand-painted brush script that was used on its trucks when the company name was changed
Bliffert said the firm’s primary market includes single-family new construction, remodel, industrial sales, crating lumber, decking, and fire-resistant materials. “Our marketing is concentrated in the communities we serve,” he explained. “We are committed to educating our employees so that they can help our customers make educated purchases.” Bliffert said the company does this by offering an extensive in-house training program along with Do it Best and Northwestern Lumber Association training.
“We’ve been with Do it Best for about 12 years, and before that, we weren’t affiliated with any other buying group,” he offered. “Do it Best is the only co-op that has a great hardware line and also a great lumber and building materials line. They’re the only total solution available.”
Bliffert said while the company has remained in business for many years, he attributes continued success to relationships and partnerships. “It’s nice to have a company that is working for you that’s not a supplier or vendor, but a business partner. That’s the biggest advantage Do it Best has over other suppliers.”
Oak Creek is one of Bliffert Lumber & Hardware’s seven locations in southeastern Wisconsin.
Bliffert said one thing that keeps his staff loyal is his own commitment to the staff. “When the economy crashed about 10 years prior, the lumber sector was hit hard and part of our hiring strategy was to bring in experienced employees from yards that closed or downsized during that time,” he said.
Softwood species offered by Bliffert Lumber include Douglas Fir, Spruce, Eastern White Pine, Engelmann Spruce, Hemlock, White Fir and Southern Yellow Pine.
Bliffert Lumber & Hardware has almost 50 delivery trucks, including a pink one to support Susan G. Komen Wisconsin, a local non-profit dedicated to fighting breast cancer.
He continued, “We’re glad to not have the housing crisis today, but we’re faced with new challenges. Overall, there aren’t enough people in the industry. We seek to hire honest, intelligent, hardworking people who have a desire to help others. We’re not just recruiting from prior industry experience now. We teach new employees all about the industry and prepare them with the tools to succeed.” Being committed to their employees shows up in the numbers. Today, the company employs more than 150 people across the lumberyards and the central office.
After a recent expansion, Bliffert said that most of the firm’s additions involved closure of existing lumberyards. “Some of the smaller yards we were able to purchase evolved from wholesale relationships, with us as their supplier,” he said. “When they were ready to go out they came to us because they knew we would be a good fit because we had been in a relationship with them and they knew how we operate.”
Going forward, Bliffert said he is always looking for new ways to expand and expects moderate growth in the coming year.
