Today we’d like to introduce you to Derek Evenhouse.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started with Old South Carriage Co building the carriages and working on our 65 acre farm on Johns Island. I really enjoyed the people that worked at Old South as well as the owner, David. I continued working in different roles at the company, from on the farm to in the barns downtown, and eventually a tour guide and now management.
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?
It hasn’t been a smooth road but it has been fun. My second year as General Manager was 2020 with Covid. I was still learning my role in the company and how to effectively lead the team when the pandemic hit. I did a lot of learning very quickly and how to navigate an ever changing working environment. I think the struggle of everything changing overnight was helpful as we climbed back towards normal operations in 2021. I found myself a lot more adaptable and working from first principals rather than trying to remember what we had always done in the past.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I have always considered myself a jack of all trades, master of none. Professionally this has often shown its self as being a problem solver. I enjoy finding something, pulling it apart, and putting it back together to more thoroughly understand how it works and think through improvements. Our carriages are cutting edge in some ways, and we have made improvements in how light weight, durable, and capable they are as touring vehicles. There are not a lot of carriage builders in the world and a lot of what we do is building a first, testing, and then replicating it. We build our surrey carriages just like a boat- its a fiber glass hull, with a lot of marine elements/ components added to it. Our fleet of 20+ carriages are unique to Old South Carriage Co and have never seen any other vehicles quite like them.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
We have seen a steady trend in tourism here in Charleston and horse drawn carriage tours have been at the heart of it. We believe seeing this historic city by historic horse and carriage is the best way to fully appreciate the beauty and charm Charleston has ‘frozen’ it;’s self in. We are not the oldest city in America, but arguable the most well preserved historic district to see both 1700-1800’s homes, buildings, and church’s.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://oldsouthcarriage.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oldsouthchs/#
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Oldsouthcarriage
