While competition has become the accepted modus operandi of capitalist free market economies, leading roofing contractor C&N Construction, Inc. knows that building alliances with its competition can be an unexpected source of longevity in an enormous market. These healthy relationships have secured the firm, which self-performs all its work with a team of around 300, the respect of its industry while supporting the success of others in the same line of business.
At home at its headquarters in Hillside, Illinois, C&N Construction, Inc. is an industry specialist with a generous presence across the state and beyond, with two more thriving offices in Peoria, Illinois, and Charlotte, North Carolina. C&N Construction, Inc. is a licensed general contractor that specializes in roofing, siding, and gutters across various states while its storm restoration experts and property claims specialists are some of the best in the industry. The company’s estimations are done in-house by Xactimate Level 3 estimators, and the company is certified as a GAF Master Elite contractor.
Here, quality drives longstanding relationships. Recently completing a 70-unit apartment complex project in 90 days illustrates the skill of C&N Construction, Inc.’s field teams and high level of efficiency throughout the firm. Yet, taking care of roofs is not its only consideration for success.
Reinvesting earnings means building solid foundations. As part of this drive, the company recently launched a vigorous rebranding campaign that has seen billboards installed along busy expressways showing off its new look. It also spruced up its website with a redesign and powerful SEO boost.
With an unlikely start in life guiding him to be the change he wants to see in the world, owner Curtis Eshghy brings a lot more to roofing and staffing than industry expertise and pride in quality. Alongside a sense of tenacity, he also has an uncanny understanding of human nature and a firm belief in the goodness of people. “As a leader in our industry, to assist other upcoming companies with advice and resources [makes us] an asset to them,” he says on going out of his way to protect newcomers to the roofing industry from making the mistakes he had to overcome along the way.
From an economic standpoint, Eshghy believes in continuous growth. To achieve this, between 10 and 15 new sales associates join the company monthly. Plus, its entire workforce is formally employed. The company holds all relevant certifications and its 150 installers are equipped with all the training they need to excel at their trades, leaving only the need to utilize specialty subcontractors for trades such as electrical, plumbing, and HVAC. Therefore, customers are guaranteed C&N Construction, Inc. quality without the frustration of having multiple companies working on their projects.
The rewards for this uncommon approach to roofing have been generous, with C&N Construction, Inc. doubling its revenue annually since its inception and landing the firm a coveted spot in Roofing Contractor Magazine’s Top 100 Roofing Companies every year for three consecutive years now. “If [we’re] building something that’s going to last, [employing our own teams] is a huge aspect of that,” Eshghy says.
Remaining current and competitive means having the right equipment. To this end, the firm invests in select machines that render the quality its customers have come to trust. With four box gutter trucks used for seamless gutter installations, field staff have all the tools they need to deliver excellent work in the field. In addition, they are awarded points based on their performance. That allows management to keep standards high by supporting its teams in bringing their A-game to the job at all times. It also helps to identify staff’s weaker areas, allowing for skill and knowledge deficits to be promptly corrected through training.
Established by Eshghy in a room in a rented house in Batavia, Illinois, in 2009, the company moved to its first real office in Broadview, Illinois a short time later. After expanding into an adjacent property, its offices moved again, growing while balancing start-up costs. Since then, C&N Construction, Inc. has gone from strength to strength. “We are probably now one of the 50 or 60 largest roofing companies in the country,” Eshghy says.
Starting with a single employee, Katie Fatigato, Operations and Marketing Manager, the team has grown considerably since those early days.
Investing in his team is a matter of great pride and enjoyment for Eshghy. By helping staff receive continuous education, personal growth, and a stable home life, this visionary leader knows the company’s future can only get better. As a result, tenures here are impressively long, resulting in a sense of family and security conducive to a degree of loyalty that is rare to come by these days. “It is very rewarding building people on the business side and on a personal level—creating that stability and locking in motivation,” he says, underscoring the importance of enabling growth in people’s lives as a significant motivator.
The company’s investment in its people goes beyond the usual free lunch, instead offering frequent company outings such as Top Golf, Six Flags, and company BBQs, as well as two annual company trips which see around 50 or more staff at a time, plus their partners, join in a destination group getaway on the firm’s tab. Here colleagues get to know one another better and bond in some beautiful locations like Mexico.
For Eshghy, the greatest gift in running the company is having the ability to help others. As a result, supporting those in need is part and parcel of working here. Several institutions benefit from this generosity including the Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago, Illinois; the Batavia Women’s Club; a local orphanage the company donates to at Christmas; and countless local youth sports teams, to name a few. C&N Construction has also completed 15 projects that included roofing, siding, and gutters in aid of Habitat for Humanity as well as donating leftover construction materials throughout the year, another of its community projects that help keep the team motivated to serve.
Incarcerated for five years at the tender age of 18, Eshghy knows the hard edges of life well enough to value the merits of treading gently upon this Earth today. With this wisdom informing and motivating how he does business, this is a man who wanted more from life for himself and others than hiding behind his past for the rest of time. Pushing through the discomfort of the early days, the once rudderless teen transformed himself into the kind, open-minded leader he was meant to become—one who could not be happier to serve.
Eshghy is committed to contributing to an employment solution for the post-incarceration ostracization which remains common in society today. “I want [young] people to understand that you can change your life. It’s not always what it seems at that age,” he counsels.
As part of the mission to support youngsters facing similar situations as he once did, Eshghy is developing trade training programs in collaboration with two county juvenile detention centers—a brilliant initiative that stands to change the face of labor in the region for good. “If you keep [these young guys] working from nine in the morning until seven at night, they’re going to be too tired and [without] enough energy to re-offend,” he says.
“They’re going to be making money. They’re going to be a part of society. They’re going to be paying taxes. And they’re going to feel good about themselves,” he adds, pointing out the potential for minimizing young male reoffending rates in this way. By training and employing as many as 60 individuals at a time who also receive support in becoming licensed, the all-around rewards are significant.
In the meantime, the team is doing all it takes to build a future as solid and trustworthy as its services while becoming Chicagoland’s number-one roofing contractor. Looking further ahead, however, its sights are set on strategic expansion and becoming the United States’ leading commercial multifamily and residential roofing expert. To achieve this, growing its sales team and its revenue is the next obvious step.
By creating opportunities for those who need it most by training them to deliver premier roofing services, C&N Construction, Inc. is not only committing to its own future; it is also committing to the futures of fellow Americans. Eshghy and his team are unwavering in this mission. “We want to be the place people come for their future in the trades,” he says with a welcoming smile.
