A century of independent service: Van Gilder Insurance Corp. marks a milestone with sales of more than $400 million.

Van Gilder Insurance Corp. of Denver, one of the largest independent insurance brokerage firms in the Rocky Mountains region, celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. A full-service agency with an emphasis on commercial insurance, the company provides a variety of insurance products and services, including employee benefits, 401(k) plans, personal lines, marketing of insurance products, loss control, risk assessment and management, surety and claims coordination services. It also specializes in aviation, construction, executive risk, health services, hospitality, technology and professional liability for architects, engineers and lawyers.

The company was founded in 1905 by Hal Van Gilder. His son, Dell Van Gilder Sr., joined the firm in 1926, and grandson Dell Van Gilder Jr., the current company chairman, joined in 1963. Today, the company has 240 employee-owners and the Van Gilder family, now in its fourth generation at the firm, remains at the helm.

"One hundred years ago it was really just one [employee]--and that was Hal Van Gilder," said Sandie Clay, the company's business development administrator. "He was just an office of one when we started back in 1905. In the '50s, we had maybe an office of eight to 10 employees. The majority of the growth has been since the early '80s."

Technological advances over the past century, such as the advent of the computer age and creation of the Internet, have helped Van Gilder Insurance grow. In 1969 the company incorporated and hit the $1 million mark in sales, fulfilling a promise made by Dell Van Gilder St. to his father, Hal, who passed away that year. By 1978 Van Gilder Insurance had reached annual sales of $3.5 million, attracting numerous buy-out offers. Rather than sell, the company decided to compete and grow--acquiring 15 agencies during 25 years. In 1993, Dell Van Gilder Jr. fulfilled a pledge made to his father by bringing sales up to $100 million.

The company now boasts 2004 year-end sales of more than $400 million, with nine offices in Colorado, Arizona, Kansas, Texas and Utah. It also is the Colorado representative for Assurex Global, which has 57 large independently owned insurance brokerage firms worldwide. And the fourth generation, Andy and Michael Van Gilder, have set their sights on achieving $1 billion in annual sales.

"People tend to laud me for building such a company," Dell Van Gilder Jr. said in a statement. "I've been lucky because I've been able to hire some great employees. It is those employees that have created our success."

And although founder Hal Van Gilder didn't get to see the company's growth, he would be amazed at what his progeny has achieved, Van Gilder Jr. stated. "We have been blessed with significant growth over the years and have high aspirations, but the secret remains taking good care of every client, every day," he said.

Looking toward the next century of business, Van Gilder Insurance plans to continue service to its clients, pursue continued growth, and remain faithful to its original mission statement: "To minimize our client's burden of financial loss by providing insurance and risk management services with dependability and integrity."