In 1976 Canada hosted the summer Olympics, Fidel Castro became president of Cuba and Laverne and Shirley debuted on TV. That same year Dave Crowe and Don Woodward founded Crodon Contractors. They began finishing basements, building additions and all general construction projects. In the early eighties they were hired by a well regarded custom kitchen company called Parkdale kitchens to install for them on occasion. The seed was planted. Dave’s background was design and Don’s was construction so they decided to add kitchens and bathrooms to their contracting offerings.
They had been working out of a small workshop and in 1982 purchased a building in Dundas that had been a church since 1954. The building was converted to a showroom to showcase some decidedly European design ideas that used space efficiently and showcased their craftsmanship.
Their creative approach, personal service and insistence on quality earned them a loyal clientèle and many referrals
Today’s Crodon is full circle with some added flair.
In 1984 both of Don’s sons Rich and Russ Woodward joined the company full time as junior installers. Rich excelled as a craftsman and is very particular when it comes to quality. Today He is the project coordinator. He oversees each project, mentors our apprentices and deals with the difficult task of keeping the installation schedule on track.
Russ spent 10 years in installation learning that side of the business while taking design, drafting and business classes. In 1993 he made the change from installation to sales and design. When Dave and Don retired Russ and Rich took up their respective roles.
And now the flair! Vanessa Bell joined Crodon in 2007. Her background is interior design but is also very knowledgeable in construction. She combines great space planning abilities with an interior designer’s eye and that rare ability to understand who she is designing for. Her attention to detail and creativity is an unusual and welcomed mix.
Much has changed since Crodon began in 1976 but quality, service and value never go out of style. Our showroom today is designed to show techniques, styles and ideas more than help make selections. More choice means that it is actually more difficult to choose the right product than it used to be. It is also harder to bridge the design vision with the installation realities and the long term performance expectations. Don’t worry we will help you.
Crodon is unique in that we address all of these issues. We are general contractors and can build just about anything. We focus on design initially but our general contractor roots make sure that the vision is doable and practical for the long run. We use licensed tradespeople, believe in quality, and care about our reputation.
Please visit our galleries. They are all projects just like yours that started with a phone call or a visit to our showroom. Every journey is different but the quality, attention to detail and desire to do the best work that we can do is evident in every photograph.
