Stronghold Roofing and Solar: A Great Product Every Shingle Time

As the old saying goes, there’s no such thing as an overnight success, but Lakeland’s Stronghold Roofing and Solar might be about as close as a company can get. It completed its first roof in October 2018 and today, with 75 employees, puts a new top on 25 homes per week. It’s expanded outside of Polk to Hillsborough and Sarasota Counties and even offers services in Georgia.

The reviews are great and the business is booming—so how did it happen so swiftly?

Founders Nathan Patterson and Matt Coyle had known each other for years when, while having a conversation in the midst of watching their kids compete in the elementary olympics at Lakeland Christian School, the idea of Stronghold took shape. Between Coyle’s extensive real estate experience and Patterson’s entrepreneurial bent, the pair saw an opportunity to improve the roofing service available to Lakelanders by taking a straightforward approach and finding the right people to do the job well. So Nathan became a roofing contractor and Stronghold was born.

“We joke that when you show up and you’re honest, it blows people away,” Nathan says, “but it’s really true. And if you mess up, fix it quickly. Our success is based on professional customer service. What you see is what you get with us. For example, when we say we don’t make any money on wood replacement, it really means we don’t. Roofing is not rocket science; it’s just treating people well.”

Stronghold’s straightforward approach helps customers deal with the stress of one of home ownership’s most expensive maintenance items.

That’s even better news when one considers the state of upheaval the home insurance market in Florida is in.

“We all can tell when someone is genuinely looking out for us – and we genuinely look out for our customers,” Nathan says. “Matt emphasizes our connection in Lakeland: our families are embedded in the community. We’re not going anywhere and our reputation means a lot to us.”

Nathan’s brother, Brandon Patterson, also works for Stronghold. Their father, Curt Patterson, is no stranger to building a business in Lakeland, where he is the founder and publisher of The Lakelander magazine.

Of the company’s posture toward those it serves, Nathan says the secret–which is really no secret at all–is leadership’s faith in Jesus.

“Our business is also our ministry,” the LCS alum says. “I’ve had opportunities to witness to more people selling roofs than any other job in my life. I’m not really sure why that is although I know it’s because we’re on Earth to do more than just replace roofs.”

That posture also extends backward toward Stronghold’s employees. Every man installing a roof at Stronghold’s behest is not a subcontractor; rather they are an employee with workers’ comp and health insurance coverage.

“That’s very unusual in this industry–and it’s also why I think we’ve never lost a crew,” says Nathan. The employee-only approach allows Stronghold to control production. “If there’s a problem, we’re back on the roof within 24 hours to fix it.”

Nathan’s also quick to praise Stronghold’s more terrestrial members—the sales and marketing staff—for helping deliver great service.

From the outside, the local roofing industry appears quite crowded. A quick search lists upward of 40 contractors in a 10-mile radius. It begs the question: even if Stronghold does great work with excellent customer service and provides benefits to employees that many roofing companies don’t, how can it remain competitively priced?

“Our strategy is really volume-based,” explains Nathan. “Our margins are lower than many competitors, so we can give everyone high quality materials at a great price. We don’t install bad shingles.”

They are a proud GAF Master Elite installer, and most of their products include a 10-year warranty.

Although traditional roofs comprise the majority of Stronghold’s business, it also works with GAF solar shingles and has branched out into the septic and plumbing businesses as well. It seems to be a recipe for success as Nathan says the majority of new business comes from referrals now.

“There’s beauty in the simplicity of installing a roof the right way, giving our crews the tools to do a great job, and making the customer feel comfortable that it won’t leak and it’ll last. That’s why we have so many referrals, I think. It speaks volumes to us.”

Indeed, as Matt says succinctly: “We are blessed to be able to run this business—it’s a privilege and an honor.”