Whayland Company celebrates 65 years of Delmarva business

Employees of the locally owned and operated Whayland Co. will soon gather to officially celebrate 65 years of service and commitment to the Delmarva Peninsula.

Headquartered in Laurel, Whayland is one of the oldest family-owned businesses on Delmarva, with roots dating back to 1950 and to original owner Mayhew Whayland, who based the company for many years in the Salisbury, Md. area.

Whayland began the business as a home builder, later switching to a commercial bias in the 1960s. To this day, the company remains one of the leading builders of commercial real estate in the entire region.

Upon his passing in 1984, Whayland's son, Donald, ran the business for two years before selling it to the Charles Knott Co. in Baltimore. Donald Whayland stayed on as an employee and later bought the business back from the Knott Co., along with local businessman Bob Wheatley in 1993. Two years later, Wheatley purchased the rights to the company on his own.

Wheatley ran the company for 20 years and moved the business to Delmar, and eventually to its current location on Route 13 in Laurel, in a building which once served as the site of Nanticoke Health Services' off-site clinic.

The company was bought in 2013 by businessman Steve Hentschel, who has continued Whayland's commitment to the local economy through partnerships with several chambers of commerce and other civic organizations.

“Our success depends long-term on the relationships we build with our clients and with those in the local community,” says Hentschel, who officially took over the reins of the Whayland Co. Feb. 1, 2013. “It's really a win-win situation when locally owned companies work together for their mutual gain. We construct a building for a local company, which then employs local residents, and everyone contributes to the local tax base. Everybody wins.”

Some of Whayland's signature projects over the years include the Johnny Janosik World of Furniture, several Candy Kitchen locations, the headquarters for the Sussex County Association of Realtors in Georgetown, the Movies at Midway near Rehoboth, and the Baywood Greens Golf Club near Long Neck.

Since opening its doors in 1950, the management and staff of the Whayland Co. have worked continuously to secure the company's reputation as a high-value, reasonably priced provider of construction and project management services on the Delmarva Peninsula. The company’s clients have long recognized the value of partnering with a firm that not only offers comprehensive services, but also tailors those services to the clients’ needs.

To learn more about the Whayland Co., go to www.whayland.com.