After Ridge Creek Custom Homes launched in 2005, their first new home was an intricate 6,000 square foot home in Wayzata. Rob Eldridge was the new kid on the block, but his work was exceptional and business was good. The company, then consisting of Rob and two others, was making a name for itself in the luxury market.
His success, however, was far from out of the blue. Rob grew up in the building industry, working on construction sites since he was a teenager and later moving into real estate. In 2004 he began renovating his house, which happened to be across the street from a well-established interior designer. She was the first to scout Rob’s potential for custom home building and hired Rob to renovate her house the following year. “That’s how I officially launched my career as a custom builder,” Rob explains. “I got my contractor’s license and established Ridge Creek Custom Homes. I was fortunate; referrals were coming in steady and business grew substantially in the height of the market.”
Ridge Creek Custom Homes began showcasing their talent for high-end construction, presenting their work to the high-end market in 2008, ’09 and ‘10 as the economy was winding down. Then the market crashed.
“The downturn was tough,” Rob remembers. “We were a relatively new company competing for business with third and fourth generation builders in an almost nonexistent luxury market,” he explained. While many small and new companies were unable to survive the storm, Ridge Creek Custom Homes slowly flourished. “We had to reinvent ourselves,” Rob explained about broadening their business from only luxury homes to smaller and mid-range single-family houses.
The company’s biggest strength is in their ability to adapt to the market and to their client’s vision. Every home maintains a high quality, luxury feel no matter the size or price. Adapting styles and merging timeless architecture with pristine design that meet a customer’s wish list, is what they do best. “What I love most about building homes is the ability to bring someone’s dream to life,” Rob explains, “First it’s on paper, and then you get to experience putting it all together piece by piece.”
