Our Story
Confidence Begins with Experience
For 57 years, Designed Stairs has redesigned what a staircase can be — starting with lumber, milling every part to the highest precision in the wood industry, and leading the stair industry in Chicagoland.
- 57years of stair expertise
- 5,000+curved stairs designed & built
- 2generations of customers
- 20 yrsaverage team tenure
How It Started
Like most stair companies, we were initially focused on installing stairs, buying parts from stair-parts companies. After too many incidents of parts arriving late and not meeting our quality standards, we started manufacturing our own. Today we start with lumber and custom-mill each part to the highest level of precision found in the wood industry — selling them as parts, custom-fabricating them into stair kits, and selling, installing, or assembling those kits.
Our founder, Bob DuCharme, instituted a culture of learning, growth, and problem-solving. Whether we're making custom stair parts or designing stairs, our focus is always on how it can be done more efficiently, to a higher degree of accuracy, and with the greatest aesthetic appeal.
The name was chosen to reflect the fact that we RE-DESIGNED stairs as we know them today. Designed Stairs has led the development of the stair industry in Chicagoland — through these design changes, stairs have become stronger and more affordable.
Our Timeline
- 1969
Bob DuCharme started R.S. DuCharme and Company — Wood Stairs and Railings — in the garage of his Naperville home. The mission: make an affordable stair, and take stair building out of the hands of carpenters and into the hands of stair builders.
- 1971
Relocated production to West Chicago for the room to expand and grow.
- 1975
Started our own mill to produce parts to our exacting standards — improving efficiency, quality, and lead-times.
- 1981
Changed the name from R.S. DuCharme and Company to Designed Stairs, to reflect the intentional design that embodied aesthetics, structure, and efficient process. Expanded to 7,500 square feet and seven associates — three of whom retired from Designed Stairs after more than 40 years of service.
- 1983
Relocated to Sandwich and built our own facility to accommodate future growth.
- 1989
Became the largest stair company in Chicagoland.
- 1998
Began assembling stairs for modular projects and international markets, including Japan.
- 2004
Reached the milestone of designing and building over 5,000 curved stairs.
- 2008
The housing crash required downsizing. We kept our most highly skilled team members and streamlined operations — and as a result, our level of stair expertise became unmatched.
- 2010
Developed our Master line for the most discriminating buyers, becoming the Chicagoland leader in artistic and luxury stairs — leveraging our exceptional skill to set new standards.
- 2012
Became a certified woman-owned business.
- 2015
Began a dedicated focus on stair remodels.
- 2020s
Focused on CNC production and on curved stairs — including 3D modeling and using CNC for greater efficiencies.
- 2026
Formalized product offerings for the more cost-conscious buyer, with looks similar to our custom and premium lines.
Who We Are
We view success as:
- Design and create stunning stair projects that exceed our customers' expectations.
- Being problem solvers.
- Standing in our customers' shoes and delivering excellent customer service.
- Providing a healthy, caring work environment for our employees to support their families while learning and growing.
Designed Stairs is a 2nd-generation company — and we have customers who have been buying from us for two generations.
Many of our employees have been with the company more than 25 years, and our average tenure is 20 years.
