This month, the much celebrated STIRA attic stair celebrates its 40th birthday representing a momentous achievement for this renowned Irish brand which started back in 1982 in a hay shed north Galway.
“When Michael Snr was asked to repair an attic ladder that had been brought back to Ireland from the States he saw an opportunity,” says Kate Rogers, daughter of the late Michael Burke Snr. and now Managing director of Stira.
He recognised an opportunity, and then had the vision and drive to go after it.
The Stira story is a story of entrepreneurial, engineering and business success by a driven individual based in a small, rural west of Ireland town. A story which continues presently with both Michael Snr’s children, Kate and Michael Jnr. taking over the running of Stira in 2010.
Over 40 years, Stira has become the “go to” brand for Irish people. An Irish brand built on safety, strength, quality, and service.
“Stira have an extremely loyal customer base and have the support of the Irish public who seem to relate to what this small manufacturing and installation company have achieved,”she added.
“There is a genuine affiliation with the Stira story. This appreciation for Stira and what they do is often relayed back to them when they exhibit at trade shows with them often being told………“the best thing we ever did.”.
To this day Stira continues to manufacture in Dunmore, and is a large local employer in the community with a current work force of 26 employees.
It is a testament to Stira that the majority of these employees have been with the company for over 20 years.
It is an exciting time for Stira. Along with celebrating their 40th year in business this month, they are also finalists in the BITA (Business International Trading Alliance ) Charles Darwin innovation award for their latest innovations which are about to hit the market.
Later this year Stira launch their brand-new state of the art Stira Cosy+ which meets the current demand for highly insulated, airtight loft ladder systems.
Stira are also relaunching their Semi-Automatic Stira loft ladder system which is very popular with gadget lovers and smart homeowners, especially in the UK.
One of the biggest breaks for Stira was being involved in an Innovation show on The Late Late Show in 1990.
The late Gay Byrne showcased Stira folding attic stairs to the nation, and Stira got the boost it needed to become the household name it is today.
“You’ll be delira with your Stira” is a phrase often said back to Stira by the public, or “As seen on the Late Late Show”, so Stira are forever grateful for that opportunity all those years ago.
Stira currently installs (and delivers ) up to 100 loft ladder systems every week to very happy customers across Ireland and the UK.
Stira is a fighting brand, having survived the recession of the 80s, the Celtic Tiger and the bust that followed. Stira has also survived the loss of their founder Michael Burke in 2010 and have now survived a pandemic.
There is great optimism for the strong Irish brand that is Stira to not only survive, but to thrive over the next 40 years. Well done to all at Stira.
