Excellence and Impact in Residential Construction
Story by Hunter Purnell | Photography by Bruce McCamish and Tom Namey
It wasn’t that long ago that I began working directly with Fred Trainer. For years, we were competitors in the construction industry, but even from across the market I knew how much he cared about his work and how much heart he and his team put into their builds. It’s why I eventually joined him at F.E. Trainer Construction so that I could be part of that culture, as well.
Fred grew up in Knoxville. A Bearden High School graduate, he attended Georgia Tech and sold building supplies in Atlanta before making his way back to Knoxville to get his MBA. He started F.E. Trainer Construction in 1998.
“Through the combination of loving home building and having a business degree, I felt equipped enough to start a company and try to make entrepreneurship work.” Fred is modest when he talks about this beginning, but here was a success story many years in the making.
“We intentionally did not grow at all for well over a decade,” he says, “but our recent growth allows our excellent employees the opportunities they deserve, ensures the company will last beyond my career, and have a bigger impact on peoples’ lives in the community.”
Impact. I hear this word a lot from Fred. “When we build a space that is going to be enjoyed by multiple generations of a family, it gives us all a great feeling,” he says. Our entire team feels that. So do our subcontractors and vendors. So do our clients. It’s one of the primary reasons Fred decided a few years back to expand the company so significantly. The market was providing opportunities for growth, and Fred was ready to expand.
The fact remains that it is not an easy time to be in residential construction. Between material delays, a depleted workforce, rampant inflation and increased demand for our services, it’s harder than ever to build a custom home. But at F.E. Trainer Construction, it never feels like work.
There is nothing more rewarding than meeting with a client to review their conceptual drawings, ensuring pricing meets their budget, walking them through the varying levels of our building process, all in an effort to help them achieve their dream. And our clients trust in that process.
At F.E. Trainer, we pride ourselves on living our core values of excellence, wisdom, honesty, and faith and family. Our work serves a higher purpose for us and our clients, and we use our experience to ensure we are providing the best service possible for everyone’s benefit. We make sure our customers always know where we stand on a project. We are both transparent and accountable. “It’s about informed decision making,” Fred always says.
Our mission at F.E. Trainer is to significantly impact the lives of others in a positive way. Because these projects are more than just houses; they are homes. Whether they are brand new construction or historic home renovations, these homes are where our customer’s dreams and memories are going to be made, where family dinners are going to happen. It’s their place of solace and rest.
To get to be a part of that is something that brings all of us at F.E. Trainer Construction back to do it time and time again.
SILVER: Custom Home Builder | Custom Home Builder – One Million + | Remodeling – Residential
865-522-2423
1185 Keowee Avenue, Knoxville
fetconstruction.com