Sure-Fire Inc. Plans Expansion of Horicon Location

Horicon, Wis., October 22, 2020 – Sure-Fire Inc., Dodge County’s largest heating and air conditioning contractor, will expand its Horicon location to accommodate the company’s operations. Now in its third generation of family ownership, Sure-Fire services, designs and installs commercial and residential HVAC systems throughout Central and Southern Wisconsin.

The company is headquartered in Horicon and employs 35 throughout the region. The $1.5 million project will allow the company to enhance its capabilities to serve its customers and employees.

The project includes the expansion of office and warehouse space, as well as renovation of existing office, warehouse and production space. New roofing, exterior painting, repaving of the existing parking lot and enhanced landscaping of the property are also included in project plans. Construction is scheduled to begin in mid-November and will be completed in April of 2021.

Founded in Mayville in 1947 by Emil Malesevich, Sure-Fire has deep roots in Dodge County. Emil’s son Tom moved the company to Horicon in 1984 and has been in its current building since then.

“As third generation owners, we felt it was the time to put our own stamp on the company’s property and believe that the building as completed will be ideal for the company’s operations for many years to come,” noted Sure-Fire President Casey Malesevich.

Vicki Pratt, President of Thrive Economic Development, began working with Sure-Fire principals in the Fall of 2019. ThriveED provided the company’s decision makers with assistance designed to ensure that their proposed next investment would be in a place that would maximize their growth potential. Some of this assistance took the form of demystifying complicated site-selection criteria and accessing state and locally available resources.

“We work hard to attract new business investments to Jefferson and Dodge counties, and we work equally hard to retain our existing businesses” said Pratt. “Sure-Fire is a home-grown shining star. It’s a great story, a great place to work, and the kind of high-growth business model necessary for sustained economic vitality in our two-county region. We’re excited to watch their continued growth in Dodge County.”

“As a contractor, we’re involved with countless construction projects, but we’ve never really been in the “owner’s” seat,” noted Malesevich. “Having never gone through this process before, ThriveED’s help was extremely valuable to us.”

Malesevich also noted that the City of Horicon has been a great location and partner for Sure-Fire over the years.

“The City’s leadership has been extremely helpful during this process,” he added. “It always feels good to be wanted, and Horicon made it very clear from the beginning that they valued Sure-Fire as a business in their City. We’re very excited to make this investment back into the community and hope it continues the recent improvement on the west side of the City.”