Future Proof: Kate and Michael Burke jnr, Stira

Michael Burke snr started Galway-based attic stairs company Stira in the recession of the early 1980s. His view was that if a start-up could survive in a downturn it would prosper in the good times. He also believed the quiet market presented an opportunity to establish Stira as a quality brand by ensuring all units leaving the factory were finished to his exacting standards.

Burke died unexpectedly in 2010, leaving his daughter Kate and son Michael jnr to take the reins. Both knew the business well, having worked in it since childhood. However, they found the transition from knowing how things are done to calling the shots a challenge.

Decision-making
"Dad had a huge amount of experience and always seemed to know what to do and to be confident in his decision-making. This self-belief is something we have had to learn," Kate Burke says.

“I think if Dad could see how badly everything has been hit by the recession he would be gutted. In 2009 he had taken steps to cut costs by introducing short time. He genuinely believed this would only be for a matter of months. Our fitters are still on a week on a week off and staff numbers are down from 43 to 25. We used to have 12 vans on the road. Now we have three.

“Because so many people had worked in the business for so long, it continued to run very smoothly operationally when Dad died. Where we missed him was in terms of deciding direction. He always had very clear objectives and how to achieve them. He had considered the UK but didn’t go after it, as it was so busy at home. Now we feel the UK is the direction we have to take.”

Michael Burke snr stumbled on the idea for Stira when he was asked to repair a poorly made flight of attic stairs. He set about designing a stairway that was easy to handle but rock solid in use and able to withstand wear and tear.

“We are constantly seeing problems with cheap staircases that break and cause accidents,” says Michael Burke junior. “Our products all have the kitemark, the quality and safety certification set by the British Standards Institution, and we are the only company offering a 10-year guarantee.”

Household name
More than 100,000 Irish homes have Stira staircases and the name is synonymous with attic ladders here. "Stira is a household name with home owners but also with professionals such as engineers and architects, who specify them for public buildings," Burke jnr says. "The difficulty is that the Irish market is fairly mature in terms of penetration and flat because of the recession.

“What’s keeping us going are bespoke staircases for overseas customers, and sales to Scotland and England, where we are focusing our sales effort and hoping to build similar recognition of the brand,” he says. “In the UK you can buy a set of stairs for £60 but it costs up to £800 to have them fitted. We do both for around £550 through a network of distributors we’re keen to expand.”

Stira has three main staircase products: a domestic model, a heavy-duty version, and automatic and semiautomatic options. The staircases can be customised to fit any ceiling height and the company’s most unusual commission to date was a 15-foot staircase with gold plating on the metal parts for a customer in the middle east.

In addition to staircases, Stira supplies under-stairs storage and accessories such as customised trapdoors, safety rails and insulating hoods. It has also recently become a distributor and installer (in Dublin and Connacht) for Chimney Safe, an Irish invention that prevents chimney fires.

“Dad always said he was building the company for the family and our biggest concern is not profit, it’s longevity and ensuring the business survives,” Kate Burke says. “That said, we have been hit hard by the recession. Our turnover has dropped from around €3.5 million to as low as €1.2 million but it is recovering now and heading towards €1.6 million.

“What has helped insulate us to some degree is that Dad always ploughed money back into developing the business,” she adds. “He was always working on new ideas to add value. When there was money around he spent it on ensuring we had the best production facilities and on introducing processes such as world-class and lean manufacturing. These systems have allowed us to scale down without compromise and equally will enable us to scale back up as sales improve.”

“We now see our future as building export markets, starting with Scotland and the UK,” Burke jnr says. “We are pitched at the upper end of our segment but the evidence so far is that there is a demand for a safe, guaranteed, and quality-engineered attic staircase product.”