Growth stories
What happens to a book of business when the ceiling comes off.
Four originators. Four trajectories. Zero hypotheticals — these are the real production arcs of producers in this office, and every one of them is now building a team.
Ashland Alitz
Ashland joined with $3.2M in annual production. Eight seasons later she closed $48M — a 15× book built on first-time buyers, MN Housing expertise, and a team that grew around her. She now leads Lending Lakes & Co and is actively adding originators.
15× production growth · 2018–2025Growing a team — reach out via the contact page →
Nick Thiry
Nick tripled his production in two years — $12.5M to $38M — by plugging an already-strong referral business into a platform that could actually keep up with it. Thiry Mortgage Group is now building out its team.
3× production growth · 2023–2025Growing a team — reach out via the contact page →
Sam Capistrant
Sam went from $12.3M to $38.8M in three years. The difference wasn’t working more hours — it was operations, marketing, and a branch full of top producers pushing each other. He’s growing a team and looking for the right people.
3.2× production growth · 2022–2025Growing a team — reach out via the contact page →
Shane Manor
Shane built Manor Mortgage from $11.6M to $37.7M in five years — a northwoods-brand business with a machine behind it. His team is growing, and he’s specific about who fits: people who outwork the market and stay kind doing it.
3.3× production growth · 2020–2025Growing a team — reach out via the contact page →
The pattern
Same originators. Different operating system.
None of these four became different people. They plugged strong referral businesses into a branch with dedicated operations under Kate Harrington, an in-house creative studio, client strategy under Olivia Swanson, and business development under Mercedes Forslund — inside a company holding roughly 6.5% of all Scotsman Guide Top Originator slots nationally.
That’s the honest explanation. Not magic. Infrastructure.
From the 2026 Fairway Annual Meeting
The charts show the growth. Here’s the kind of coaching behind it.
Sales strategist Phil Jones took the stage at Fairway’s 2026 annual meeting to break down a three-part framework top mortgage teams use to win more clients. This is what Fairway puts in front of its originators — press play and steal something for Monday.
Your chart is flat by comparison? That’s fixable.
Join the group, bring a branch, or join one of these four teams. Every path starts with one confidential conversation.