A WOMAN'S TOUCH
When she was a child, Katrina Hosea would sneak away from her suburban St. Louis home and make her way to nearby Bee Tree Park. The attraction, for Katrina, was the vacant Nims Mansion, a massive stone home built in 1927 by Eugene Dutton Nims, an early president of Southwestern Bell Telephone Company.
The once-grand estate, built high on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River, had stood empty since 1968 and was rumored to be haunted. At the very least, it was dark, dilapidated and dangerous; certainly no place for a curious little girl to go exploring.
"I would sneak into the house," says Hosea, now ranked among the First Coast's most successful remodelers and custom-home builders. "There was something about it that just drew me in. I loved envisioning how it must have looked in its heyday."
Today the restored Nims Mansion is a popular venue for weddings and other special events. But for Hosea, who roamed its halls 40 years ago, it was a source of inspiration and likely the genesis of her passion for building new homes and rehabilitating old ones.
"Of course, no one was allowed in the Nims Mansion back then," Hosea recalls with a chuckle. "But don't tell this girl she can't do something."
It was an attitude that would serve Hosea well when, as an adult, she entered a male-dominated industry and quickly earned the respect of her peers and the affection of her clients.
Hosea's company, dubbed BeeTree Homes as an homage to her childhood getaway, now ranks among the Top 5 remodelers in the region, according to rankings compiled by the Jacksonville Business Journal.
"Katrina's passion for what she does shows," says Scott Merritt, now executive director of the Home Builders Association of Metro Orlando but previously membership director of the Northeast Florida Builders Association (NEFBA), where he was staff liaison to the Remodelers Council. Hosea will be chairperson of the council next year.
"She listens and digests before she reacts," adds Merritt, who notes that Hosea is among the local remodelers pushing for an industry code of ethics to which members must adhere.
A LIFE-CHANGING EVENT LAUNCHES A CAREER
Hosea didn't plan to become a builder. She majored in English and Public Relations during a brief stint at Southeast Missouri State. There she met her husband-to-be, Chuck, whom she married in 1985. The couple moved to Jacksonville, where they stayed for just a year, and then to Tallahassee.
While settling into a new community, Hosea, who says her ambition at the time "was to support my husband in what he wanted to do," began taking college courses in humanities. She was particularly fascinated by architecture, and how buildings helped to define societies.
"I fell in love with architecture," says Hosea, who once again felt herself inexorably drawn toward building. "In fact, a lot of things about my life changed while I was in Tallahassee."
One of those life-changing events was the couple's fateful decision to build their own home. "It was a horrific experience," says Hosea. "The builder knew what he was doing, but he was totally disorganized. And I called him on it. He said, 'Do you think you can do better?' And I said, 'Yes, I can.'"
The builder, perhaps amused and perhaps intrigued, hired Hosea as an intern. "I was basically his flunky," Hosea recalls. "He taught me framing and I taught him multitasking. In the meantime, I found that I liked everything about the building process. I liked the smell, I liked the ever-changing environment."
Hosea absorbed everything she could during her internship and continued to work for her builder mentor even after having her first child.
By the time the Hoseas moved back to Jacksonville in 1995, when Chuck took a job with Intuition Systems, she was seriously considering turning her passion into a career.
She soon earned a contractors' license and began renovating homes for private clients while managing a household of four yonug children.
"As a woman, I believe I bring a different perspective to this industry," says Hosea. "I understand the intricate workings of family life, and I place value on our clients' space and the effect it has on their daily lives. It's important to me that my clients love their home."
A TRUE FAMILY BUSINESS
BeeTree Homes was formed in 2005 and quickly gained attention by earning a prestigious first-place award in NEFBA's annual Parade of Homes. The winning project was previously a "white elephant" in the Queen's Harbour neighborhood - and Hosea's $2 million-plus makeover wowed the judges. "That parade win really launched my business," she says.
It would be the first of many industry awards for excellence over the next seven years. That reputation for quality, combined with Hosea's unmistakable gift for relating to clients and putting them at ease, has ensured a steady stream of customers ever since.
For Hosea, building is both a profession and a calling. "I feel that God gave me a passion for this industry early on," she says. "Then he challenged me to do something about it. I was intimidated at first, but I was also determined to follow my dream. I hope I can inspire other young women to pursue their dreams, too."
As BeeTree has grown, it has truly become a family affair. Several years ago Chuck decided to give up his corporate career to go into business with his wife. He earned his contractor's license in 2009 and today concentrates on operations and production, allowing Katrina to invest more time with clients.
The team also includes a project manager, an adminstrative and sales support coordinator, an interior designer and an architect.
Perhaps not surprisingly, many of BeeTree's tradespeople are women, including its painter, its drywaller, its roofer and its engineer.
"Team," in fact, is something Hosea strongly emphasizes. In both remodeling and new construction, subcontractors are typically brought in separately, and are concerned only with their individual res-ponsibilities. Hosea, however, is proud that her trade partners take a holistic view of every project, and work cooperatively for the benefit of the client.
"I've surrounded myself with people of integrity and people who are willing to work together," says Hosea. "They like and respect one another. They're also the best at what they do, and don't take shortcuts. When one of our projects is complete, they know it will be something we can all be proud of."
Plus, once Hosea has found a trade partner who delivers quality work, shares her values and supports her team app-roach, she's unlikely to make changes. "I don't shop every project just to try and save a few cents here and there," Hosea says. "That approach doesn't build loyalty and it certainly doesn't build teams."
Consequently, the relationship between Hosea and her team - much like the relationship between Hosea and her clients - transcends business. "We care about the people we work with as people and we appreciate them for who they are," she says.
What does the future hold for BeeTree Homes? Hosea says she isn't content simply to be listed among the region's largest remodelers. She's striving to occupy the No. 1 slot.
And coming soon: A BeeTree design center, to be located near Queen's Harbour, where there'll be displays of cabinetry, countertops and other products from which clients can choose. The facility is being launched in partnership with Beach Trading Company for retail and trade use.
A PERSONALIZED APPROACH TO REMODELING
BeeTree is a design-build firm. That means one entity, working under a single contract, provides everything from conception through construction.
For clients, the advantage is one point of contact and, usually, tighter cost controls, faster delivery and fewer unanticipated problems. "One person is driving the bus," says Hosea. "We'll work with clients from the feasibility study phase through design completion and then through construction and beyond. The process is seamless."
In fact, the core three-pronged philosophy that BeeTree adheres to from start to finish has helped to set it apart. The components of that philosophy are:
• It's all about working together. The BeeTree team, including the architect, the designer and the contractor, come together in order to gain a thorough and shared understanding of each client's vision. "We view each project as unique," says Hosea. "Knowing how people live requires that we get to know them on a personal level." That's why to BeeTree the client is considered to be the most important member of the team.
• Communication is critical. For a client, one of the most stressful aspects of building or remodeling is feeling out of the loop while the project goes on. That will never happen to a BeeTree client, says Hosea, who makes communication her top priority. "Because the client is involved every step of the way, they're less likely to be surprised with change orders and unexpected costs," she notes.
• Remodeling is a service, not a commodity. There are other skilled remodelers in Jacksonville, but at BeeTree, Hosea combines solid professional expertise with a customer-oriented approach that facilitates confidence and trust. "I'm an advocate for each client," Hosea says. "I consider it my ethical responsibility to make certain that their specific goals are met and that they receive the best quality and the best value."
What kind of job is right for BeeTree? The company does it all, from new custom homes to whole-house remodels. But Hosea has a particular passion for kitchens, which she describes as "the home's command center and it's heart," as well as bathrooms.
"We're mindful of the budgets within which families want to work," Hosea says. "So whether it's a major project involving the entire home or just updating a room or two, people who work with us receive the same level of service and commitment."
Certainly, people who hire BeeTree feel as though they have a friend and an ally in Hosea - as well as a kindred spirit. "Katrina was the only contractor out of the four we interviewed who understood how a kitchen and a home work," says Mary Ann Myers of Ponte Vedra. "She was able to redesign the home the way it should have been designed in the first place. She made great use of space that would have otherwise been wasted."
Adds Julie Birkeneder of Jacksonville: "Katrina is an artistic genius, and used her uncanny ability to take my vision, combine it with an existing structure and create a beautiful design that enhanced function. She's also a woman of character and integrity, who fulfilled her word and delivered what she promised with excellence."
Hosea's own words make it clear why her company has earned the trust, and even the affection, of its clients: "We always envisioned working with families, helping them to realize their dreams through building new homes or remodeling existing ones. We enjoy being a part of their lives."
Considering the company's impressive growth, much of it through referrals, the feeling is obviously mutual.