Born With a Hammer in Hand: The ELC Story

“Family” is a word that comes up over and over in discussions with The Exterior Living Company (ELC) — your family, their family, and the professionally crafted common spaces that encourage a family unit to build special memories together. In a lot of ways, this focus on connection has defined ELC Founder Mike Chekanoff’s time in the industry so far. It has become his unique stamp in Central Ohio’s outdoor living community and part of the driving vision behind this new venture.

One thing you get from hearing Mike talk shop is a sense of inevitability. In some ways, he seems to have been moving toward this moment, steadily building its foundation, for decades.

Another thing you pick up on is Mike’s ability to zero in on the relationship between a person’s lifestyle and their living space. This commitment to reflect a family’s lifestyle and “honor the space” has become the bread and butter of The Exterior Living Company today. For the full story, however, we have to look about a century in the rearview.

A Generational Legacy of Industry Success

Three generations in and still counting, our family owned and operated company comes from a robust (family) tree of folks doing what we do. Simply put, our knowledge of outdoor living comes second only to our knowledge of the Cleveland Browns depth chart.

Growing Overseas

Mike’s father first worked as a furniture carpenter in his native Yugoslavia before immigrating to Akron, Ohio in the mid-1960s. Overseas, he built his reputation repairing and crafting fine European pieces for households and businesses. Despite his success, the European artisan had a strategic shift in store for life stateside.

Apprenticing in Akron

Upon arriving in Akron, Mike’s dad picked up his tools and stepped outside, pivoting to awnings, sunrooms, and siding. And this time out, he brought his son. It was there, under his father’s guidance, that Mike entered into his first unofficial apprenticeship at a young age.

“I was basically born with a hammer in my hand,” says Mike. “My whole life, I’ve built things.”

That an education of this depth can ever be achieved through more traditional coursework or trade school offerings is unclear. For Mike, it was the ultimate teeth-cutting opportunity. This comprehensive outdoor classroom served as an obvious catalyst to Mike’s future in the industry, but also to shaping the unique perspective he brings to the work itself.

Few people come up in this industry with direct access to every angle of the business, but that’s how Mike learned. Through handling his father’s contracts, forging new relationships, and making candid project recommendations long before he could drive a car to a job site, Mike got to see up close how the gears turn. And he started taking notes.

Building in Columbus

Over the next several decades, Mike started a family and built his hard-won reputation in Central Ohio. Building on his vast wealth of experience, Mike continued to nurture an ever-growing number of happy customers — always looking to serve, and always, in his own words, “looking for that next challenge.”

Meeting the Next Challenge

In collaboration with Mike’s two sons, ELC is carrying forward a rich tradition of multi-generational industry command throughout Central Ohio. And while the grandkids may not be born wielding a Craftsman hammer, you’d better believe they’ll know how to swing a Fisher Price one.

When I asked Mike what excites him most about launching ELC, his answer wasn’t exactly what I expected. Maybe I expected innovating with emerging materials or exploring ways to serve an adjusted demographic. In some ways these are baked into his answer, but while it’s clear that building a family enterprise has always been a primary goal, he’s also interested in something more elusive. Something that never fails to bring a new challenge: “the unknown.”

And while there may not be a whole lot of unknowns for Mike at this point in his career, it’s telling that he’s still seeking them out. After all, it’s in these undefined spaces that a builder does some of their best work, and it’s this effort that continues to surprise and delight today’s homeowners after forty years.

The ELC Pledge‍

“We pledge to always honor the trust placed in our team through a commitment to consistency, craftsmanship, and integrity as we design, build, and follow up on projects around our Central Ohio community.”