Elite Roofing & Solar Owners Named “Young Guns” by Roofing Contractor Magazine

Young Guns: Meet the Roofing Contractors and Product Leaders Moving the Industry Forward

Randy Brothers and Cody Hayes: Elite Roofing’s DNA is Thicker Than Water    

Randy Brothers and Cody Hayes are not blood relatives, but they’re the first to admit they’re closer than most siblings.

Friends since the seventh grade, these Colorado natives have been side-by-side — first as locker mates in high school, then roommates at University of Northern Colorado (UNC), and now business co-owners — for virtually every personal and professional milestone. Including when Brothers found himself in need of a business partner to rescue his dream of owning a construction-contracting company.

Still in the throes of the recession and reeling from a former business partner’s decision to walk away, Brothers reached out at just the right time in 2010. Hayes, too, was at a crossroads.

Shortly after graduating from UNC, he hired into a commercial property-management company and worked his way up to regional manager, where he was responsible for more than 20 properties in five western states. By late 2010, an offer to become a regional manager at the company’s east-coast operations in Baltimore materialized. Though appreciative of the opportunity, Hayes said he wasn’t thrilled with the idea of leaving his friends and family behind for the Chesapeake Bay. He had a month to decide whether to forgo a promotion and secure salary for the unknown, and Brothers put him to work, literally.

“He’s my go-to guy,” Brothers said of Hayes. “Back in school, we joked about being in business together some day, and little did we know that we’d be here, right where we are. To some degree, we feel like we’re where we’re supposed to be.”

Hayes stayed, and neither could argue with the results. In just four years, Elite grew from a company with $500,000 annual revenue and four full-time employees to a $6 million enterprise with nearly 70 employees at peak season. And it all happened before Hayes and Brothers turned 33.

They currently have a mix of residential (70 percent) and commercial (30 percent) clients, but the pair said the best decision they made was to specialize in a certain segment of roofing. One that has a formidable adversary virtually guaranteed to generate business ever year — Mother Nature.

The demand for Elite’s services is driven by the weather, and reliable insurance companies pay the bills for the work. The key for Elite is being able to differentiate themselves from others at the kitchen table.

“We offer a great service, and homeowners with insurance will pay any quality contractor the same amount regardless,” Hayes explained. “What they’re buying is you, what you stand behind. And if you have great communication, you really can’t lose.”

Another component to Elite’s winning strategy is taking a different attitude toward unforeseen errors and failures.

“Our goal is to always do a good job, but some of our best referrals are from when bad things happen,” Hayes said. “It’s because we took care of it and owned it.”

Hayes lives in Denver with wife, Devon, who is expecting their first child in March. Brothers lives in Denver with wife, Christina, and their 8-month-old son, Ryder.

Though the seductive allure of Colorado’s climate and snowcapped mountains drew the two avid snowboarders together as teens, the pair also developed a strong bond during church activities growing up. Both still say they believe faith plays a big part of their success, and it’s one of the main reason they’re focused on giving back.

In addition to sponsorships and in-kind donations, Elite contributes $100 from each roof sold to a non-profit of the homeowner’s choice, on their behalf. Through this program, Brothers said they’ve helped support several worthwhile causes, including a women’s shelter and programs designed to help residents in Denver’s inner city.

“We’re living (our dream). We wake up every day knowing that there’s a lot of people whose lives are better than they were because of the company we created. That’s an awesome feeling,” Brothers said.

Click here for the full article as it appear on Roofing Contractor.  (We’re the second set of Young Guns, so go ahead and just skip that first guy. Also–be sure to scroll through the images at the top. Cody and Randy are the 3rd and 4th images.)

Congratulations to Cody and Randy for building a reputable business in an ethical manner. We’re all proud to be cogs in the wheel of the machine that is Elite Roofing!

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