About Our Company
Custom Paving is a Family-Owned & Operated Business
The journey began in 1978 when our founder William (Bill) Wells decided to set out on his own. He was a husband and father of eight (7 boys and one girl), who wanted to make sure his family was always taken care of.
Having made a career of working in construction and general contracting, Bill felt the time was right to make the leap out on his own. Bill was a ball of nerves as he purchased his first dump truck and paving equipment, but on that cold April day, Custom Paving was born!
Humble and crude beginnings would be an understatement. It wasn’t an easy start for Bill. He and his eldest three sons had their fair share of long hard days, often spent fighting a breakdown or an uncooperative job site. Many times Bill wondered what he had gotten himself into. But it was Bill’s work ethic, determination, and drive to succeed that would power the business forward.
What Bill and his sons lacked in equipment, they made up for in craftsmanship. Bill had one motto that he lived by and preached to all of his sons: “Quality work at an affordable price!” He wouldn’t accept excuses. He demanded the job to be done as was promised and on time. Although there were times he felt he may have pushed too hard, Bill wanted to instill the same drive into his sons.
Quality Work at a Fair Price
Over the next 15 years, Bill and his sons saw that hard work pays off. Word of their “Quality work at a fair price” got out, and Custom Paving saw their business explode. Demand grew and they had to expand their coverage areas to meet that demand. The company grew as well. In the late 1990’s, Bill’s sons (now 6 of them in the business) decided it was time to branch out.
Now, there would be 6 different companies, but they would still collaborate on larger jobs. Leonard took his sons, like his father before him, and continued on as Custom Paving. Today Custom Paving is still a thriving business that continues to cover all of Wisconsin as well as parts of Iowa and Illinois.
Leonard has taken those lessons taught by his father, and has instilled them into his sons as well. Three generations later, those lessons, “Quality and affordability,” continue to power our business today!
Bill took a great deal of satisfaction in knowing that he had given his family something greater than a dollar. He taught them to succeed, no matter the adversity, and to always put the quality of the job first. He always believed that the main ingredients for a successful business were quality and affordability.
Bill was a man of high integrity who never lost sight of what made a good business great – appreciation for the customer! Thank you, William Wells, and thank you to all our customers!