Finken

History

Established in 1961.

Finken Companies is a family owned and operated business founded in 1961 by Wilfred F. Finken, better known around the area as Wif. It started out as a water conditioning business based out of Melrose, MN called StaSo-​Soft and acted as an independent dealer. In 1969, Wif and a partner bought out Culligan Water in Sauk Centre further growing the business in the market area.

In 1976, the business expanded into the plumbing trade and dropped the Culligan brand and became Wif Finken’s WaterCare carrying the WaterCare franchise. At this time, it expanded its storefronts and gained another location. In 1995, Thomas G. Finken, Wif’s son took over the business and continued to intensify the market by expanding rapidly over the past several years by buying out a number of his competitors. Besides expanding the locations, Tom branched out into different operations including heating and cooling, spas, coffee services, underground sprinkler systems, and plumbing.