J.D. Miles & Sons, 110 years | Anniversary Issue
When Joe Miles, Sr. started his business, J.D. Miles & Sons Inc. in 1910, he could never have imagined it would still be thriving 110 years later.
Back then, Miles installed and repaired slate roofs, and more than a century later, the family-owned business has been featured on HGTV for its work on historic home restorations.
Now on the fourth generation of the South Norfolk-based business, its location has changed three times — all within a mile radius — due to growth.
Sherri Miles, great granddaughter of the founder and president of J.D. Miles Roofing Inc., works alongside her father, J. Dudley Miles III, chairman of the board, and her brother, J.D. Miles, president of J.D. Miles & Sons.
J.D.‘s services include residential work throughout Hampton Roads and a commercial division that works across the state and regionally. Some of the notable roofing jobs J.D. Miles has worked on throughout the years include the Hampton Roads Convention Center, Norfolk Academy, Virginia Beach Convention Center and various buildings at Old Dominion University, Norfolk State University and Tidewater Community College.
A recent switch to solar power has fulfilled their desire to take care of the environment and help establish long-term environmental sustainability issues.
“We’re completely off the grid,” Sherri Miles said.
When it comes to the sustainability of the business itself, Sherri Miles said it has been all about the values established from the start.
“It’s really all about people — the people who work for us — we invest in them and they in turn do fabulous work for our customers and they trust that we’ll do the job right,” she said.
The company has 40 full-time employees.
But, when it comes to the possible future transition to the fifth generation — the Miles siblings have six children between them — she said it’s been important to give them a sense of place and understand the history of the businesses.
“They all have worked here a little bit during the summer and during the pandemic,” Sherri Miles said of the kids who range from 13 to 20 years old. “We’re opening the doors to them to see if it might be interesting to them later in life.”
Fascinated by family businesses herself, Sherri Miles is enrolled in Loyola University Chicago’s Next Generation Leadership Institute to learn about long-range planning.
“This area in Virginia is so rich with family businesses,” she said. “There are some family businesses that have survived many generations. They are the backbone of our community.”
And J.D. Miles & Sons has its place among them.
Company name: J.D. Miles & Sons Inc. and Miles Roofing Inc.
Founded: 1910 in South Norfolk by Joe Miles Sr.
Headquarters: 210 B St., Chesapeake
About us: Residential exteriors and commercial roofing for Hampton Roads, commercial roofing for Virginia and neighboring states. Local roots with national reach: Founding members of RoofConnect, a nationwide commercial roofing services company, and Meta Team, a woman-owned national commercial roofing firm.
Current owners: J. Dudley Miles III, chairman of the board; J.D. Miles IV, president, J.D. Miles & Sons Inc.; and Sherri Miles, president, Miles Roofing Inc.
Milestones reached: J. Dudley Miles III was president of the national roofing contractor association in the 1990s; founded a national service company, RoofConnect, in 2000; and in 2020 Sherri Miles started a national woman-owned roofing company, Meta Team LLC., that caters to Fortune 500 companies with diversity mandates in procurement.
Obstacles overcome: Survived through the Great Depression, world wars, recessions and the pandemic.
Keys to longevity: “We have not only survived, but excelled through the Great Depression, several world wars, recessions and now a global pandemic, by staying true to our mission of delivering quality products for our clients and by being an extraordinary place to work for our employees,” Sherri Miles said. “We believe that when each of us lives into our values at every level, we lift up, lead, and serve our community.”
What’s next: Education and training our employees to earn Pro-Certified Roofing Professional certifications. Expand our offerings in energy-efficiency, solar, and green roofing technologies.
Contact information: 757-545-5912, jdmilesandsons.com, miles-roofing.com, instagram.com/jdmilesandsons
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