left, with founder, president and dad Steve Wesley
BUILDING COMMUNITY
When Steve Wesley started Wesley Construction in 1984, there were no computers, just paper files. Checks were written out by hand, and business was conducted in person or on the telephone. An email address was eventually added, but Vice President Bryan Wesley says his dad has never had a computer at his desk.
“We’re such a people business,” Bryan says. “Technology makes us faster, but the relationships, the trust, the craftsmanship, all of that matters most.”
When Bryan came into the business in 2019 after working in Houston, he told his dad he didn’t want to change a single thing operationally for the first year.
“I told him I’m putting my calculator down and I’m going to learn long division because he’s obviously – after, at that time, 35 years of being in business for himself – been very successful with how he conducted business.”
Bryan learned that his father’s secret was surrounding himself with a strong team loyal to its clients. One of those clients felt so personally connected to the company that they attended Bryan’s kindergarten graduation.
“Relationships are what have made us so successful,” he says. “We’re in a service industry, so you have to have a good team around you. As long as you’ve got good people that you’re working with and working for, you can get the job done.”
Bryan has since added a few modern touches— direct deposit, social media, and Procore construction management software—while keeping the people-first culture his dad built.
“We finally stopped handwriting checks,” he jokes, “but we’re still in the relationship business.”
Baton Rouge is their home base, but the company has done work in 33 states and just finished a project in Eugene, Oregon. Bryan’s vision for the future is organic growth.
“Our focus is building lasting client relationships,” he says. “As a company is growing, I want to be alongside them, earning their trust on that first project and then being the first and only call that they make when they have a need, whether it’s new construction, renovations or maintenance of their existing facilities.”
Wesley Construction’s one-stop-shop approach keeps clients coming back. Bryan’s most rewarding project has been the renovation of New Orleans’ Roosevelt Hotel. That same client also hired them to do the Baton Rouge Marriott, Homewood Suites Nashville, the Oregon project and many other projects from San Diego to Washington, D.C., and Seattle to Miami.
The Roosevelt is special because Bryan was in high school at the time, working as part of the construction crew, completing the demo of the former Fairmont Hotel’s walls and carrying new drywall up the stairs.
“I love being able to build projects that I can take my own family to,” he says. His three daughters call The Roosevelt their “second home,” and look forward to the Teddy Bear Tea and iconic lobby lights each Christmas.
They also love working with businesses that are here to serve our Baton Rouge community, like Tumbles kid’s fitness gym, Parkview Baptist School, Ochsner and Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center.
“I look at it as we’re a service provider trying to build services that we find great for our community,” he says. “This is the community that built us, and we want to help build our community, too.”
CONNECT WITH US
10182 Patriot Drive | Baton Rouge 70816 | 225. 753.5600 | wesleyusa.com
