Marson and Marson, Lake Chelan Building Supply merger announced

MANSON/CHELAN - "One reason they bought in is, they like what we do.” Lake Chelan Building Supply (LCBS) owner Brett La Mar is confident in the merger announced March 2 with TAL Holdings LLC, dba Marson and Marson Lumber in Chelan, and that things will continue much the way they have.

TAL Holdings LLC, a 9-store chain of retail building material centers in Oregon and Washington, announced they have reached an agreement in principle to acquire Lake Chelan Building Supply (LCBS) in Manson and Chelan.

An all-employee meeting was held to announce the acquisition by TAL to the LCBS employees. After a transition period, Lake Chelan Building Supply will begin operations as part of the TAL family of companies on March 30.

Lake Chelan Building Supply was founded in 1979 by Edd and Sharon La Mar. The company is still family owned and operated by Brett La Mar, son of Edd and Sharon. Lake Chelan Building Supply was founded on the simple but important motto of “where customers become friends.” Today, Lake Chelan Building Supply is a full-service building material supplier in the greater Lake Chelan market. TAL and Lake Chelan Building Supply share the same basic business principles – building honest, fair and ethical relationships with our customers. LCBS, like the TAL companies, operates full-service lumberyards, serving the professional builder as well as the retail customer.
 “We are excited to join forces with Lake Chelan Building Supply,” said TAL CEO M. David Dittmer.

TAL currently operates a branch in the Chelan market under the Marson and Marson brand; but the Marson and Marson location in Chelan was not adequate to support the business potential in the market. TAL explored building a new facility, but the costs were prohibitive.
“The opportunity to join forces with Lake Chelan Building Supply presented itself and the rest is history,” said Dittmer.

Over the next few months, the Marson and Marson location will close with employees and product transferred to the LCBS Chelan location. At that time, TAL will continue to operate under the Lake Chelan Building Supply brand. La Mar said by July the move should be complete.

La Mar said, “Lake Chelan Building Supply is excited to join the TAL Holdings team. One of our biggest struggles over the years was to have the resources to meet our customer’s needs. Joining the TAL family will greatly help in that area.” LaMar added “I am pleased that TAL has decided to honor the legacy of my parents and Lake Chelan Building Supply by continuing to operate under our company name.” La Mar will be joining the management group of the combined Marson and Marson and Lake Chelan locations. He expects to spend 4 to 5 years working locally in management, but eventually be less involved in the day-to-day operations by the time his kids graduate from college.

Dittmer stated that, "This acquisition is the right addition to our company. We have an opportunity to strengthen our market share in greater Lake Chelan with the addition of LCBS. We are anxious to expand our footprint in this growing market.” La Mar said, “The Marson’s team are at the Lake Chelan stores this week and are looking forward to a Contractor Night planned for late April at Lake Chelan Building Supply.”

“Lake Chelan Building Supply has a strong employee group. Their years of experience in our industry, coupled with the expertise of the Marson and Marson team in Chelan, make us the place to go for building solutions for both the consumer and the contractor,” stated Dittmer.

About TAL Holdings LLC: TAL Holdings has 4 operating divisions: 1) Tum-A-Lum Lumber, founded in 1906, serving the Hood River, The Dalles, and Pendleton markets in Oregon, 2) Marson and Marson Lumber, founded in 1955, serving the Leavenworth, Wenatchee, Chelan and Cle Elum markets of Washington, 3) Browne’s Home Center, founded in 1947, serving the San Juan Islands of Washington and 4) Gerretsen Building Supply serving the Roseburg, Oregon market. All four divisions provide contractors and homeowners with a wide assortment of building material products and services. www.TALHoldingsLLC.com