Customer service and innovation at the heart of Tar and Chip Ottawa
To work off his student loans, Taylor Davis started a small asphalt-sealing business, going door-to- door to sell his services. That’s when he had the revelation that there was a better way to pave driveways.
“After knocking on 50,000-plus doors in the city, we learned that people hated their asphalt driveways and were really dissatisfied with costs and the products available to maintain them,” said the founder and CEO of Tar and Chip Ottawa. “We were just trying to pay off our school loans, but slowly we discovered that the driveway-sealing and paving products available on the market were really bad.”
In some neighbourhoods, Davis found that people hated asphalt so much that they were leaving their driveways unpaved.
“In Manotick and Greely, where there was a lot of new construction at the time, there were lots of gravel driveways and people didn’t pave them, not because they couldn’t afford it, but because they just hated asphalt and they were looking for an alternative,” he said.
That’s when he learned about tar and chip paving and found the alternative that people were waiting for. Tar and chip is a process normally used to construct low-traffic roads. “If it’s good enough for roads,” Davis thought, “it must be good enough for driveways.” They paved a handful of driveways in their first year and realized it was a perfect solution that was less expensive than asphalt and more durable for the freeze and thaw cycles of the Canadian climate.
After a few years with basic tar and chip construction, Davis and his crew began experimenting with more innovative solutions to improve upon their product. That’s when they developed TAC Black, which uses an asphalt-based surface coating that protects and secures the surface stone, derived from an existing roadway process.
“We offered a new product that looks and feels more like asphalt, but is crack-resistant and flexible with our layered construction method,” said Davis.
They kept innovating until they came up with GemStone, which uses coloured granite stones on the paving surface that is finished with polyurethane resin.
“The resin and TAC layers allow us to create colourful, natural stone pavements that are as stunning as they are durable,” noted Davis. “This upgrade is a worldwide first and we’ve applied for a patent on that. It has several advantages, not just appearance-wise, but also structurally, over existing options and other pavements.”
All of that innovation from a small Ottawa company drew the attention of big, international firms like Addagrip in the United Kingdom, which is considered a global authority in resin-bound paving. The result was that Tar and Chip Ottawa was awarded the Canadian distribution rights for Addagrip’s flagship product, a porous paving system. They are now looking for distributors and franchisees who are interested in selling their products in other parts of the country. “We’re in a position of nice growth,” said Davis.
Davis highlights the four paving options offered by Tar and Chip Ottawa, designed to cover every budget and landscaping option:
The original tar and chip product, an economical paving solution;
TAC Black, priced similar to asphalt, but a much higher lifetime value;
GemStone, a decorative surface that offers a range of coloured granite options to suit your design needs;
Addagrip’s premium porous pavement is completely resin-bound and eco friendly. Made with highend stones from the UK, it’s water-permeable and remarkably strong; priced similar to interlock.
“All of these pavements are more flexible and crack resistant. They have exceptional lifetime value because they are layered, and can all be resurfaced at the end of their life cycles by applying more of the same material that is used to construct them, rather than having to excavate the whole pavement and replace it again,” he added.
Davis also pointed out that Tar and Chip Ottawa now offers a ten-year warranty on their new paving jobs and are proactive about keeping their customers happy.
“We visit the property three, four times during the first two years to make sure that everything is perfect,” he said. “If there’s anything that doesn’t look right, we just take care of it.”
Keeping customers happy is what drives Davis to continue innovating and providing solutions where none existed before.
“I’m really excited about being somebody who’s able to give people another alternative to the status quo.
Before we came along, nobody had any options. They’d be left with failing asphalt or gravel driveways, paying to bring in more gravel every year. We ended up saving a lot of people a bunch of money and improving their properties.”
For more information, visit www.tarandchipottawa. com.