Exploring Life & Business with Eric Barocio of Paradise Patio Covers

Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric Barocio.

Hi Eric, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
The backstory behind starting Paradise Patio Covers began when I first entered the construction industry. 10 years ago I was an insurance agent, working for a large national insurance company. Dissatisfied with my career path, and upon support of a close friend of mine, I decided to enter a union apprenticeship. With a 6-month-old baby and a wife at home to support, I transitioned my career from the comforts of a white collar desk job with seniority to the uncertain dangers of blue collar work. Making $16/hour, and working nights and weekends (often 12 hour shifts) I stayed determined to complete what I started, and soon realized that I had a real interest in metallurgy, welding, and fabrication. During my time as an apprentice and journeyman millwright, I would take side jobs welding, fabricating, and framing up patio covers. My journey of building what is known today as one of the top patio cover companies in California began with a general hobby. Realizing I could do more with the skills I had developed, I obtained my contractor’s license and began Paradise Patio Covers. With 3 years in business, my team and I have completed over 450 patio covers across Southern California. We have developed strong partnerships with commercial clients and municipalities. I am proud of what we have accomplished, and realize that it all started with a motivation to do better for myself, my family, and now for the communities I have the privilege to serve.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Starting a business from nothing is by no means a smooth process. There are a lot of self-help influencers that convince young people that business is easy, and working for yourself is the only way to live. The truth is, being a business owner requires an absolute amount of attention to your customers, and operating a business is consuming of your time and finances. There are entire families that depend upon the success of your business, and that responsibility means that as a business owner I owe my employees and customers everything. That can take a toll on your family and your health. Operating a business, let alone a construction company, is not easy. No one prepared me for the regular 16 hour days, the missed birthday parties, or the late night text messages from customers. There are days that I want to say “enough” and hang it up entirely. But despite the struggles, I choose to develop the business because I have been blessed with so much more: Freedom to create, an opportunity to build, and an ambitious and hard-working team. If it were easy everyone would be doing it, and if there are challenges it means we are being refined for greater growth. My desire is that we can continue to serve the communities that call upon us to do good work.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Paradise Patio Covers is a true outdoor living brand. We focus on bringing luxury to backyards and commercial spaces. We customize every job we build, and listen to our customers wants and needs when designing and building their structures. We don’t build for the here and now: We build for the long term. We focus on quality construction, durable and lasting materials, and dedicated customer service. Our warranties are what make us unique in our industry, and we stand behind everything that we build. We are constantly training our team, and innovating to deliver the latest and greatest in the field of outdoor structure and patio cover construction. I am proud of our team and their dedication to the craft, and innovating in this space into the future will always be a top priority for us as a company so that we can always deliver the best for our customers.

Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
What I like best about Los Angeles is that it is extremely diverse. No one community in LA is the same. It holds a rich history that extends well beyond and holds a special place in my own family heritage. My great grandfather raised his family in Los Angeles, and its cultural history has had a direct impact on how I was raised, and the values I hold dear. Los Angeles is made up of hard-working people, and in the Latino community where I am from, I wouldn’t be who I am and hold the values that I do if it wasn’t imputed by those who came before me. I see a huge responsibility to keep that going, and pass that on to my children and create a heritage of hard-work that I feel all of Los Angeles really believes in. Los Angeles represents the best of America in that we all hustle, find a way to build something unique, and share that with the community around us. I am truly grateful for Los Angeles, and for its future.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.paradisepatiocover.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paradisepatiocovers/