Meet Doug Ryder

Today we’d like to introduce you to Doug Ryder.

Hi Doug, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I am originally from Essex in England before moving to Boulder, Colorado in 1996. Growing up, I left school at 15 and started an electrical apprenticeship at a factory in England. At 20 years old, I started my own electrical contracting company, Ryder Electrical and within six years, I had a team of 12 electricians. We did residential, commercial, industrial contracts all over England. Then, at 30, I started a small plumbing company as well. Because of all of my contacts in the construction world at that point, I decided to branch out into residential home construction in England. A fun thing about construction projects in England is the buildings range from the 12th century to the 20th century- so a little older than the ones here in the US. I would do historical renovations, specifically historical barns that I would convert into residential dwellings throughout the area of Essex, England. I really enjoyed that work and that’s where my love of residential renovations was birthed. At that point in time, I was running electrical, plumbing, and residential construction businesses.

Upon arrival in America in 1996 (my wife is from Boulder, CO), I had to start over in a sense, as most of my contacts and network were in England. I started to purchase some properties in the now LoHi area of Denver, CO with a partner, where we developed around 34 properties in the Highland Area in the early 2000s and also purchased the Grant Street Mansion, which we ran as a commercial rental property and completed a historical restoration of the property. A few years later, I decided to branch off on my own and ended up forming Essex Developments (a homage to my hometown) to build and sell homes in Boulder, Arvada, Louisville, and Denver. Today I am still the owner of Essex Developments, where we do everything from bathroom remodels to custom home builds.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The construction business is never a smooth road and is constantly changing and adapting! It was difficult to come to the US without really knowing anyone aside from my wife. It was definitely challenging- coming from three successful businesses in England to starting over as an entrepreneur in the US with no network or contacts was pretty difficult, but also an exciting challenge. Construction methods in America are also quite different to England’s. After I studied and passed my General Contractor’s License for the US, I then started to learn different American construction methods, materials, processes, etc., so by studying for that exam, I learned a lot.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Essex Developments is a General Contractor specializing in Residential Remodels, Additions, and Custom Homes. We do everything from bathroom remodels to custom home builds to custom barns. We are especially known for getting projects done on time and on budget with the highest level of quality. I think the thing I’m most proud of is the connection I have with my clients. I talk to each of my clients almost every day if not multiple times a day, to make sure they feel comfortable. I like my clients to feel comfortable and confident that they can trust me to make their vision come to light and with their living space. My goal is for the clients to still like me after the project is complete, and vice versa! But overall, I think the passion and love I have for the residential construction industry shows through my work for my clients.

The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
Obviously, we all had a crazy, challenging year to say the least. Getting projects done in a timely fashion from scheduling, shipping and materials were halted, making clients comfortable, and keeping everyone healthy and safe. Logistically it was really difficult to limit the number of people on the project so we could make sure everyone was healthy and safe at all times. Just a lot more thought goes into a job.

At the same time, people were spending a lot more time in their surrounding environment, so they became more aware of their existing dwellings-not many of us are used to sitting at home as much as we have in the last 18 months. People decided to spend their vacation/entertainment money on their living spaces, their clothing money turned into their living space money. The outside environment (patios, decks) became important to them. No one was in the mood to move so they just decided to remodel, which fed their requirement to spend money on the exterior and interior living spaces.

Contact Info:

• Email: EssexDev59@gmail.com
• Website: https://essexdevelopmentsus.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/essexdevelopmentsus/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Essexdevelopments

Image Credits
The profile picture is from Lumyn photography