Spotlight
SPOTLIGHT
ALL DECKED OUT Trained as a carpenter, Hickory Dickory Deck President, Brad Arnold ’01 continues to stay connected to Mohawk. By Mary Teresa Bitti
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any young people don’t know where a career in the trades can lead. Brad Arnold ’01, a graduate of the carpentry program and president of Hamilton, Ontario-based Hickory Dickory Decks, Canada’s largest deck company, certainly didn’t. It’s something he’s working to change. Born and raised in Hamilton, Brad says he never even entered the tech wing of his high school. “We didn’t have people visiting the school to explain the possibilities of a career in the trades.” He spent two years studying engineering at McMaster University, “but it wasn’t for me.” While working in sales at a car dealership, Brad met Tom Jacques, the owner of Hickory Dickory Decks.
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Brad joined the company in March 1997 as it was positioning for growth. Hickory Dickory Decks sponsored his education at Mohawk College and his apprenticeship. “That program allowed me to become a Red Seal certified carpenter.” He is also a licensed designer and over the past 20 years has grown his career from sales, to building and designing decks, to training other carpenters, to vice president and, for the past two years, president. Today, he is responsible for the day-to-day running of the business, sales, managing a team of roughly 40 people, supporting approximately 30 franchisees and recruiting. Brad has stayed connected to Mohawk in several ways. (Two of his four children are also alumni.) He recruits students from its carpentry, architectural technology and civil
