When Scott Selzer graduated from Western Michigan University, he thought he knew the career path he was destined for: school teacher. He loved working with kids and it gave him summers off to run a home improvement construction business—School’s Out Construction—where he honed the skills he’d learned working alongside his engineer father in his youth.
One particular summer, when a client challenged him to find a high-quality pergola that could be adjusted to keep the sun out or let it in, Selzer’s research revealed that such a product didn’t exist on the U.S. market, so he imported the closest option from Australia. While installing it, he saw several flaws and was certain he could create a superior pivoting-louvered cover. It became the turning point that launched what is now known as StruXure, one of the fastest growing private companies in the United States, as recognized by Inc. magazine in its Inc. 5000 list for the past five consecutive years.
“It was hard to leave my students, but I was so sure of this product that I couldn’t NOT take it to market,” said Selzer. “Yet, I knew that designing and manufacturing an outdoor architectural product needed my full-time attention.” He admits the timing of his career change led to a few sleepless nights—right before the 2008 economic downturn—but he truly never looked back.
“It wasn’t just about bringing a new product to market, I also liked the idea of helping to improve the way people live by getting them to spend more time in their outdoor spaces,” noted Selzer, “and I believed the way to do that was to make those outdoor spaces more comfortable and functional via a versatile protective cover.” Were there challenges? More than Selzer could have imagined, but with a mantra of good isn’t good enough, he sees challenges as learning opportunities rather than obstacles. Just like the original experiment to create a pivoting louver patio cover for the U.S. market, Selzer has looked for ways to continually improve his product ahead of the competition. StruXure’s Pergola X is the most watertight on the market. It offers a patented 360-degree gutter system that channels rainwater from the closed louvers into the gutter system where water is expelled into downspouts concealed in the posts. And StruXure products are powered by Somfy’s exceptional motors and the latest technology.
StruXure has continued to innovate with new products, accessories, and engineering intelligence that make a great pergola even better. The Pergola X now offers four models, with a growing commercial clientele, in addition to increasing residential clients.
As an essential business, StruXure has been able to maintain operations through the pandemic. However, with safety top of mind, StruXure employees who can perform their duties remotely have been asked to do so. To stay connected, meetings have been shifted online, with in-plant production proceeding uninterrupted.
As the company has grown, Selzer says he’s had to learn how to transfer responsibilities to others. “When you start out, you are involved in every facet of the business,” he explained. “But while I’m still very involved, I haven’t figured out how to be multiple places at once, so I’ve had to let others step up.” He says he’s been lucky to find great people with the right skills to help him advance the company. He holds staff meetings several times each year at which to discuss progress, lessons learned, new innovations, and to recognize staff members for their contributions. A message about the company’s core values of dedication to quality, customer service, and innovation is painted on a prominent wall at the headquarters, as a reminder to everyone who sees it that StruXure will not take its success for granted and will continue to look for ways to make a great product even better.
About Scott Selzer, founder and CEO of StruXure
Previously a middle school teacher, Scott spent most of his time crafting the minds of young students while also working on a summertime construction business to supplement his teacher’s salary.
As a part-time home remodeler, Scott found himself finding a solution for creating an outdoor shade structure that would still allow sunlight to shine through the adjacent home’s interior, but he never imagined this project would eventually lead to the start of a nationwide company that would earn a number of accolades, such as recognition in the Inc. 500 Fastest-Growing Private Companies list five years In a row. But, after an extensive search for the perfect shading structure, he realized that what his client was asking for didn’t yet exist and he took it upon himself to design and build his own product—a pivoting, louvered-roof structure that the user could easily control, and a product that would be a major turning point in Scott’s career.
Since 2011, StruXure Outdoor (established as such in 2018), formerly known as Adjustable Patio Covers and then, Arcadia Building Products, has created a series of innovative, versatile outdoor pergolas and shading structures that are designed to withstand all types of weather conditions and offer its customers/clients an upgraded outdoor living experience. StruXure is especially well-known for the Pivot 6. The Pivot 6 pergola, designed with 6” louvers, offers a full 170-degree range of motion that provides a cool oasis, regardless of the sun’s position. The Pivot 6 is also now available with StuXure’s Somfy technology, which allows users to control the product from a smartphone app.
