By Kathy Bowen Stolz
America’s Choice Custom Builders is a family-owned business that believes in treating every customer like family. And just as family relationships are built on memories, builders Donald and Rocky Theaux want their customers to be in homes where they can proudly spend their lifetimes creating memories.
The Theauxs’ goal is to earn their clients’ trust and confidence every day and to improve the lives of the clients that have entrusted them with their homes.
“We have been granted a great responsibility that is authorized to us to make a positive impact on all who come in contact with us. We will always treat each other with respect and dignity as we hold each other accountable to the highest standard of excellence. We offer our clients a tremendous value without compromising integrity and are honored to be their builder,” Donald stated.
“Integrity, quality and value set us apart from other builders in the Lafayette area,” said Rocky Theaux, who owns America’s Choice with his dad, Donald.
Rocky added, “We will always be about quality. We’re passionate about using the best products and materials, installing them with great care.” Furthermore, he pledged that America’s Choice will maintain clean, secure and safe job sites.
Donald said he demands the best quality in materials and workmanship. He believes quality construction is not a 40-hour-a-week job, but a lifestyle. He is always available for his customers and believes in keeping every customer as a friend for life.
“We will always listen to our clients and do our very best to meet their needs. A ‘custom home’ means a unique home for our clients and their families. We strive to offer unparalleled customer service and to create a ‘wow experience’ for each of our customers,” Donald said.
“We offer free estimates, free consultations and guaranteed satisfaction. We are a service company, not a product sales company. We stand by our work.”
Although the company name America’s Choice may confuse some newcomers to the Lafayette area, this custom builder is a local business. The Theauxs believe in keeping the business simple.
And their approach works! After working as a brakeman and conductor for Southern Pacific Railroad, Donald started the company 55 years ago when he was just 25. Using his initials, he first called the company DOT Real Estate and Construction, but he changed the name in the early 1990s to America’s Choice Custom Builders.
The first house he built back in 1963 in Lafayette, which was for his family, was located just off Camellia Boulevard, west of River Ranch. It was 1,500 sq. ft., for which he paid $21,000 for both the lot and construction. He noted that his payment was $126/mo.
Like other long-time businessmen in the area, Donald Theaux has learned to weather the economic storms of the Lafayette area. “The economy was strictly oil-related until about 15 years ago. Now it’s diversified, but the oil business still affects us.”
America’s Choice Custom Builders’ focus is on all homebuyers who are stepping up or stepping down the sizes of their previous homes. Drawing from the diversified local economy, those homebuyers are coming from the medical and professional fields instead of just the oil fields these days.
“We believe in quality, not quantity,” Rocky noted. “Our goal is to create homes that have the quality, craftsmanship and features found in much larger and more expensive homes.”
They usually have one or two houses in the Parade of Homes because the parade is a good way to get their company name in front of the public, even though many attendees are years away from building. Last year the company built a showcase, 4,360-sq.-ft. home featuring five bedrooms, a swimming pool and an outdoor kitchen for the Parade of Homes. This home was a big hit with attendees, Donald said.
Donald finds the competition of building for the parade – and next to other builders in a subdivision – makes for better quality homes. (Over the years America’s Choice has constructed homes in the majority of subdivisions in Lafayette.)
The company’s usual advertising over the years has been just a sign on their sites and listed in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Both Donald and Rocky are licensed realtors, although they use their licenses only to sell their own products, not others’ homes. Both are also certified builders.
Rocky’s wife, Christie Theaux, is a real estate broker as well, Christie started Next Homes Cutting Edge Realty a few months ago after securing the local franchise.
Donald prefers construction over real estate. After 55 years of building and at age 80, he still loves seeing what materializes from an idea on a piece of paper, “You know the saying: ‘Find something you like to do, then it’s not work.’”
He was pleased when Rocky, now 42, joined the company 15 years ago. Rocky handles the majority of the building process, according to Donald, although they do collaborate on bidding and pricing of projects. “Now I know it [building] was in his blood.”
Also in Rocky’s blood is a love of boating. The family went cruising all over the East Coast in a wooden 57-foot Chris-Craft for a few years and currently the family keeps a 60-foot Sportsfish named “Reel Choice,” in Destin, Fla., where they spend as much time as possible when their schedules allow.
And just as it in the business, the personal side of America’s Choice Custom Builders is all about family.
For more information, contact America’s Choice Donald Theaux at 337-257-8323 or Rocky Theaux at 337-852-0409,[email protected]or visit www.americaschoicebuilders.com. The company‘s office is at 107 Petrus Drive, Broussard, LA 70518.