Today we’d like to introduce you to Alyda Cervini.
Hi Alyda, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
We moved to SC from Long Island, NY in July of 2022; so we’ve been here for almost a year now. We are a small family owned and operated business. We had a very busy prominent business back home with over 40 years experience. My father started this masonry company in NY more than 40 years ago, and for the last 12 years, my husband and I have taken it over and run it. We are so excited to be in the low country and offer our services here! We love the connections we’ve made and the customers we’ve been able to help and work with. We always aim to put the customer first; we value the relationships we create. Our projects come mostly from word of mouth, and we highly value our reputation. We know brick/paver projects are by no means inexpensive and are, most of the time, something individuals save up for and plan. This is why we always take time to create the perfect plan and design for our customers and always give our customers the best quality work. We hope to make our business here in the low country just as successful as it was back home. We hope to help our new neighbors near and distant with any hardscape projects they’ve longed for and deliver quality and exceptional work.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Moving our long-standing, successful NY business to our new home in the low country has been challenging. Creating a business in a completely different state was far from easy, and there were many new things for us to learn, even with the decades of experience we offer. There were new materials and brands to become familiar with, along with learning where new supply yards, dumps, and many other things are located. We had to make many new connections and form new business relationships. That said, we are delighted with the relationships we have formed and all we have accomplished here. Having such a successful, long-standing, word-of-mouth business back home made it more challenging here as well, as we now had to prove ourselves here in the low country as a completely new business. No one here knew us or our long-standing history back in Long Island. We had to hustle to get our first couple of jobs to get our name and the quality work we deliver in the Charleston/Summerville area. Many times my husband and I were wavering and wondering if what was a hugely successful masonry business back home would make it that way here in Charleston. Our doubts and uncertainty never knocked us down, and we continued to build professional working relationships and put our quality, precise work out there. We are incredibly grateful for the customers who have taken a chance on us and allowed us to prove ourselves and the quality of work we deliver.
Let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
We do any form of hardscape. This includes patios, walkways, stoops, seating walls, retaining walls, stone veneer, indoor fireplace stone veneer, columns, BBQ islands, outdoor kitchens, etc. What sets us apart from others is the small family-owned feel you get when working with us. You communicate with my husband or I directly. We do not sub out any of our work. My husband does every job himself and is on every job site. It is his precision and what I call his OCD workmanship that you will receive if you choose to work with us. Communication is very important; we like to make our customers feel supported, heard, and understood. We never mind meeting at suppliers with you to view material before ordering and starting the project. In fact we encourage it. This is a business I was born into; some may say it’s in my blood, and we always take pride in anything we do, whether a small job or the biggest of jobs. We value communication and quality work above all others; that is our foundation here at Legacy Masonry Design.
Please talk to us about happiness and what makes you happy.
What makes me happy is seeing customers able to enjoy their yards to their fullest potential and help design what they’ve always imagined. We take pride in our work. I know I keep saying how we deliver quality work, but that is because it is the truth, and until you have personally worked with us, you will not understand this. Also, what makes me happy is being able to work with my family. When I was younger, I remember going on estimates with my father every weekend; at the time, I found it extremely annoying as I just wanted to go out and do things and enjoy the day, and I found a couple of stops to get there annoying. But now, as an adult, I appreciate it and value those memories so much. I understand all the hard work my father put in to start this business, and that is my driving force, my ambition for keeping it successful here in the low country and sticking to the values he started this business with 40+ years ago. Our kids continue the tradition or legacy, as one may call it, and are now the ones who sometimes come along for the car ride and sit while my husband is on estimates. I hope they, too, learn to value and appreciate those moments as I now do and one day can take over this business just as I did from my father. Keeping Legacy Masonry Design a successful, well-known, highly reputable business to one day share with our son and daughter is what truly makes me happy and strive to be the best.
Contact Info:
- Website: Facebook.com/LegacyMasonryDesignLLC
- Facebook: Facebook.com/LegacyMasonryDesignLLC
Image Credits
@Legacymasonrydesignllc
