- Words by Tess Van Straaten Photography by Don Denton

Mario Conforti began his career as a builder when he was just 14 years old乌鸦传媒攚orking for his cabinet-maker dad back in Italy乌鸦传媒攁nd he says he couldn乌鸦传媒檛 imagine doing anything else.

乌鸦传媒淲hatever we needed, we would make,乌鸦传媒� the 79-year-old founder of Conforti Homes says. 乌鸦传媒淲e used to make windows and doors, and we would even make furniture. You start from the beginning and when you finish, you乌鸦传媒檝e done something. You乌鸦传媒檙e creating something with your hands and the more you build, the more you want to do it.乌鸦传媒�

After moving to Canada in 1965 and starting a homebuilding business with his wife, Vera, that building bug spread to their sons, Gino and Maurizio (Mo).

乌鸦传媒淏oth my brothers have worked with my dad since they were 13 or 14 years old, keeping up the family tradition,乌鸦传媒� Tania Conforti explains. 乌鸦传媒淚 saw that and said, 乌鸦传媒業乌鸦传媒檓 not doing that!乌鸦传媒� I actually worked as a paralegal for 18 years and I never thought I would go into the family business.乌鸦传媒�

Tania began helping out part-time in 2006, but as the Conforti family乌鸦传媒檚 custom home business grew, she realized she couldn乌鸦传媒檛 keep juggling both jobs.

乌鸦传媒淚 was working at a law firm and I was burnt out and this was far more enjoyable,乌鸦传媒� says Tania, who came on full-time in 2019 and handles all the contracts and designs. 乌鸦传媒淚 love design and I love the creativity of it. And because of my background in law, I have the ability to read and write contracts and that makes it a lot easier for us.乌鸦传媒�

乌鸦传媒淚t was not planned that everyone would work in the business, but it乌鸦传媒檚 fun and we all get along very well,乌鸦传媒� adds Mario, who乌鸦传媒檚 now semi-retired. 乌鸦传媒淲e respect each other and if there乌鸦传媒檚 a problem, we sit down and talk.乌鸦传媒�

The three siblings all have distinct roles乌鸦传媒擬o is the project manager on job sites and they call Gino, a gifted interior finisher, 乌鸦传媒渢he artist.乌鸦传媒� Tania believes their ability to work well together and make both the business and the family work is because they grew up watching their parents do it.

乌鸦传媒淲e learned that business is business and family is family,乌鸦传媒� she says. 乌鸦传媒淔amily is important and, at the end of the day, family is more important than our business.乌鸦传媒�

For Tania, the biggest learning curve has been getting used to working for herself and finding the right work-life balance.

乌鸦传媒淚 spent 18 years working for somebody else, and suddenly I went from my day being 8 o乌鸦传媒檆lock to four, or eight to five, to my time not always being my own,乌鸦传媒� says Tania, whose adorable dog, Lola, joined us for the interview. 乌鸦传媒淲hen you work at home and your office is at home, it乌鸦传媒檚 always there. You don乌鸦传媒檛 get to walk away from it and it乌鸦传媒檚 all about finding those boundaries and that balance.乌鸦传媒�

The biggest challenges for the business right now are the same many companies are facing乌鸦传媒攍abour shortages and supply-chain issues.

乌鸦传媒淕etting products that we need in a timely manner has really been an issue since COVID-19,乌鸦传媒� Tania says. 乌鸦传媒淲e try to get our custom homes done within a year and we乌鸦传媒檙e really good at that, but we乌鸦传媒檝e had to give ourselves a buffer because there乌鸦传媒檚 just things we can乌鸦传媒檛 control.乌鸦传媒�

The pandemic has also hammered up demand for renovation and building projects, which is something that initially surprised this tight-knit family in the early days of the crisis.

乌鸦传媒淲hen the pandemic hit, we all had that nervousness that something might happen to our business because we weren乌鸦传媒檛 sure that people would still want to build,乌鸦传媒� explains Tania. 乌鸦传媒淎nd the shocking part for all of us is that the construction industry boomed. People couldn乌鸦传媒檛 travel so they took their travel money and said, 乌鸦传媒業乌鸦传媒檓 going to make my home my sanctuary.乌鸦传媒櫸谘淮�媒�

With their business growing even faster than they expected, Conforti Homes has several exciting projects coming up, including smaller developments, and Tania is planning for more growth in the future.

乌鸦传媒淲e乌鸦传媒檝e really found a niche in the building market and we have a good reputation so we get a lot of referrals,乌鸦传媒� she says. 乌鸦传媒淚f you乌鸦传媒檇 asked me two years ago if I could foresee where we乌鸦传媒檙e sitting today, I would have said no. I thought it would have taken us longer to get here.乌鸦传媒�

There are lots of lessons Mario has passed down to his children over the years, but Tania says the one that resonates the most has nothing to do with construction.

乌鸦传媒淭he best advice my dad has ever given me is to do what makes you happy, as long as it乌鸦传媒檚 not hurting anybody else in the process. And I try to live my life like that.乌鸦传媒�

After building a successful business and spending 65 years in his field, Mario also has some key advice for other entrepreneurs or people thinking of starting a business.

乌鸦传媒淕o for it, but you have to be willing to work,乌鸦传媒� he says. 乌鸦传媒淭hat乌鸦传媒檚 the main thing because you have to like to work because it takes a lot of your time.乌鸦传媒�

乌鸦传媒淢ake sure you love what you乌鸦传媒檙e going to do because it乌鸦传媒檚 something that乌鸦传媒檚 going to be with you day and night for a number of years,乌鸦传媒� Tania adds. 乌鸦传媒淲e love what we do and it乌鸦传媒檚 more than just building a house for us. We always say we乌鸦传媒檙e building a home because we乌鸦传媒檙e building people乌鸦传媒檚 dream homes.乌鸦传媒�

Story courtesy of , a Black Press Media publication
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