ARS Building Supply was founded by Jim Wakeland and his family in 1972. Over the years, they worked hard to build relationships and meet customer needs, all the while resisting the “big box” and “national conglomerate” philosophies that were taking over building materials distribution. The problem with those business models is that they stuff all of their customers into the same box. They know cus
tomers primarily by account numbers and they know inventory only by product codes. There is no personalization and there are no friendships that draw the supplier and the customer together in a way that provides confidence that the distributor “has their back” and consistently has their best interests in mind. With the Wakeland family, on the other hand, nothing has ever made them happier than seeing customer needs be met full, on time, and without surprises. One of the longest term business relationships that ARS has enjoyed over the years has been with Isaiah Industries, Inc., of Piqua, Ohio. Isaiah Industries is a leading manufacturer of specialty residential metal roofing as well as high performance roofing underlayments and other materials. Isaiah and ARS have worked together since 1981, meeting the metal roofing needs of customers in the south central United States. In May 2017, Isaiah Industries acquired the assets of ARS, renaming the business as ARS Metal Supply. Isaiah is continuing the legacy that has been built by the Wakeland family as we grow the distribution center with additional products and services. According to Isaiah Industries president Todd Miller, “The ARS tradition of caring for customers and standing out as a distributor of choice is something I have always respected. We are very excited to be a part of what they do, and we look forward to learning from the ARS business model as we develop it in other areas of the country.”
