BRB Construction Service LLC is truly a family owned and operated business. ( shown in photo ) Roy Coffin ( middle with hat ), Ann Coffin ( far right with glasses ), Jessica (Coffin) Higley ( left of Ann with black & red checkered shirt ), Brett Coffin ( far left with hat ) & Josh Coffin ( right of Brett with hat ) handle the day to day operations as mentioned below.

Ann Coffin, a CCU accounting and finance graduate, is the back-of-the house controller, and brother Brett is the Production Homes Project Manager. Cousins Josh Coffin and Jessica (Coffin) Higley are the Custom Home Project Manager and the Custom Design Selection and Project Coordinator, respectively. As Ann said, “We always knew we had the potential and a built-in team if we wanted it.” When the opportunity was ripe about five years ago, Roy presented the challenge: “If we’re all serious about doing this, let’s step into these roles and look back later.” They haven’t had time to look back because current and near future activities consume their time and attention. Roy noted, “When you have everybody on board with the same common goal in mind, it makes it really easy to be successful.”

One of the unique aspects of Conway-based BRB Construction Services is that they came from New England, but have lived in the area since they were young teenagers. The company has a lot of local connections and also shares common ground with people moving to the area. Another unique quality is the hands-on touch they bring to every build. As Roy said, “As a family business there is a family member, who has a vested interest in the business, and is overseeing the job site on a daily basis.” Brett agreed, holding up rough-hewn hands, “My hands didn’t get like this from doing paperwork. We work side-by-side with a lot of our guys. We’re not afraid to pick up a wall and help the framers or set a window.”

BRB Construction Service LLC has a Production Division and a Custom Division.

The reason the company has two divisions, production and custom, came down to market conditions, land costs, and government and federal regulations. “It is very challenging to build an affordable home,” Roy noted. He credits Ann and Brett for getting the production program going. Roy works behind the scenes to figure out how to keep land, infrastructure, and material costs down without hurting their subcontractors.  The BRB Construction team values loyalty to locals. Roy said, “I always tell potential clients when they’re out shopping for home builders that they don’t have to choose us, but please look at a local homebuilder. I’m all for everyone making money, but our money stays here where we’re raising our kids and not going out to the stock exchange to get divvied up into pennies.” Ann added, “We do enough houses a year that we know if we went with a larger subcontractor we’d have better margins, but we don’t do that. We’re going to stick with our local subcontractors.” BRB uses the same subcontractors on their production and custom homes to ensure the same quality of work regardless of the home’s price.

By having two divisions, everyone has the opportunity to work to their strengths. Jessica said, “I enjoy doing custom because I enjoy meeting people, talking to them and getting to know them.” The same holds true for Josh. He said, “I like dealing with people. I love building and I like challenges, and I love the creativity of it.” He recently built a home for a client who has a child with autism, which meant giving special consideration to spatial configurations. Josh added, “You get to know a lot about a family, learning about them and they you, and you grow a bond.” Listening is a critical skill. Jessica listens to what people want, how they live, and can often suggest a BRB plan that can be adjusted to the client’s ideal.

For Brett it’s the systematic science of production building that appeals to him. “I like being able to make a system, repeat and perfect it, and actually make a better product in the end for less money.” They sold 50 homes in Rosehaven alone in 2018 because buyers were attracted to the large lots with no HOA or restrictions other than those imposed by the City of Conway.

One of the upshots of having two divisions is that trends normally start at the custom level, so Brett can quickly adapt new ideas to the production side. The company builds a high volume of spec homes, so staying attuned to leading-edge products is important.  BRB maintains a portfolio of lots and offers buyers flexible financing solutions. Current BRB Construction Services projects include:

• Rosehaven in Conway with large lots and no HOA; priced from the low 100s
• Driftwood Estates located off Reaves Ferry Rd – large lots and no HOA from the 180s
• The Reserve at  Heritage Downs, a small community with beautiful lake lots just off International Drive in Conway priced from the 180s
• High Point custom homes on 1-acre lots in Conway starting at 300K
• Custom homes in Carolina Forest’s Brighton Lakes from the high 200s to 450K
• Point Break at the north end of Myrtle Beach is in the design / approval phase for 82-lots for custom homes beginning at 350K
• Several minor subdivisions throughout Horry County

Building Industry Synergy spoke with three BRB Construction homeowners and their praise was uniformly affirmative. Mike and Tammy Lajoie built a custom home in Cypress River Plantation.  Being their third custom build, they were savvy consumers when they met with five different builders. Mike said, “The best part of what we liked [about BRB] was the quick answers, not ‘oh I’ll get back to you on that.’” He also appreciated that they were candid. He added, “Roy was straightforward about the price and made some very good recommendations. You could tell he took a lot of pride, and he knew what we wanted to accomplish here. Quite honestly we ended up with some of the best products you could put in a house at an affordable price. The quality is outstanding.”

Josh was on site every step of way. When the Lajoies made changes there was no padding of upcharges. Mike also spoke highly of the subcontractors, “They only use the best subs – they use great subs.”  Similarly he acknowledged landscaper Jeremy Flowers, “Jeremy is a young local guy from Loris and he takes a lot of pride. It’s unbelievable what he and his crew did.” Tammy loves the living room with the tray ceiling, windows and doors overlooking water, and all the wainscoting.  Mike said, “The finish work in here is unbelievable, all custom, it’s amazing.”

Coincidently, Brad and Susan Shoop’s house in Brighton Lakes was also their third custom build. Their realtor set up an appointment with Roy. Brad said, “As soon as we met him that was it. He was so friendly – the family business part of it – he just really got our interest. We liked what he had to say.” BRB Construction worked with them on the plan, Brad said, “The model we picked had an oversized 2-car garage and I wanted an extra area for a workshop.” Brad’s mother lives with them, so they added 10’ to the back bedroom to give her adjacent private living space. The Shoops’ main contacts were Jessica and Josh. Brad continued, “Everything came together really well. All the questions we had, they answered, everything we asked, they took care of. They’ve been a very good builder, and so good to us, especially being so far away, [in Pennsylvania during the build] we didn’t know what to expect.”  The other two houses the Shoops built were in Pennsylvania. Brad said, “There’s really no comparison on the product. BRB’s home is so much nicer to be honest. It’s a well-built home, we’re very happy. I have everything good to say about them.”

The personal touch is what Bryant Stewart likes about BRB Construction Services. Bryant and Sandy Stewart built a home in Driftwood Estates because as Bryant said, “I like the freedom not to be told what to do on my own property.” Having 2 acres and no HOA was a big draw. Bryant was grateful for Jessica’s guidance when it came to making selections. “Luckily she talked us out of some things! Thank goodness she did because I think she saved us from ourselves on a couple things. We really enjoyed the building process. It was a lot of fun to pick things, and they were real flexible.” Sandy liked the millwork detail over the entry door and asked Josh why the master bedroom didn’t have it. Later Josh surprised her by adding it, even though it wasn’t a normal interior feature. “I don’t know if you get that kind of personal attention from the bigger builders,” Bryant said.

When asked about BRB Construction Services’ vision going forward, Roy said, “We’re at a comfortable spot. Our goal now is perfecting what we have so we can make the client experience better, so we can build a better house more efficiently, and offer a more competitive product.” The company motto is, “Do more with less.” It sprang from the recession days. Ann remembered, “None of us lost everything, but we were old enough to be affected and learn from it.”  If market conditions forced BRB to slim down they feel confident they could still make a great living and go to work every day; for a group that loves building, that means everything.