Edwards & Sons Complete Property Maintenance

BIGGER PROJECTS

BIGGER REACH

FOR EDWARDS & SONS

By Ellen Ashton-Haiste

TOP the staff of Edwards & Sons. ABOVE Chris (LEFT) and Matt Edwards.

Atrend for homeowners to create outdoor living spaces, fueled by the COVID pandemic, is still evolving and generating business opportunities for Edwards & Sons Complete Property Maintenance say company owners Matt and Chris Edwards.

“Homeowners are seeing value in having something outside their back door that they can enjoy instead of having to travel,” Matt says. “The trend of doing major backyard renos hasn’t slowed down.”

If anything, he says, the projects are growing in size and scope. “Everything is getting bigger – bigger patios, bigger decks. We’ve been able to take what we do and expand on it, offer it on a larger scale.” That scale ranges from bigger to massive. Two- to three-week jobs have grown to four to six weeks, with some taking a full season to complete. Matt cites a project, now in the second year of construction, which started with an in-ground pool and now encompasses a putting green, bocce ball court and life-size chessboard.

As with that project, the scope of the projects is also expanding, “We’re getting more into the building side and carpentry,” Matt says. “For example, we’re building full garages, in addition to the usual decks and fencing.”

The range of services offered by the company includes decks, pergolas and fences, outdoor bars, water features such as ponds and fountains, landscape design and construction, and paving stone and retaining walls. They have done a few outdoor kitchens but say that trend seems to be tapering off somewhat. “People don’t want something they already have. They’re looking for something outside that they don’t have inside; that’s the feedback we’re getting,” Matt says.

The brothers are also covering a growing service area, taking on more projects outside the London region. They have recently added a crew to work in the Guelph and Toronto areas.

Something that hasn’t changed is the award-winning quality that Edwards & Sons delivers. This year they received two Grand River Natural Stone ‘Grandie’ awards, one for lighting and the other for best use of natural stone. The awards, in several categories, are offered annually by the stone supplier.

“It’s nice that with all the big projects we’re doing that we’re still winning awards,” Matt says. 

“Homeowners are seeing value in having something outside their back door that they can enjoy instead of having to travel.”