Finisher Spotlight: Hayden Durocher

Hayden Durocher — an Ontario-based drywaller and president of Duro Tech Design — didn’t immediately fall in love with the finishing trade. In fact, at first, he kind of hated it.

After losing his job during the COVID pandemic, Hayden started working as a general contractor, picking up renovation jobs and whatever else he could get his hands on for work to support his family. He started doing lots of work patching drywall, and as his skills increased for drywall work, so did his affection for the craft.

“In the beginning, I really didn't enjoy the drywall process,” Hayden told us. “I didn't have any of the tools, knowledge, skills for being able to finish drywall. But the universe just kept throwing those jobs at me. One thing led to another, and further investment into tools and research and homework, all led me to where we are today, specializing in custom homes in Muskoka and the Simcoe County area. It’s been a journey!”

Duro Tech Design: ‘We don’t cut corners. We finish them.’

With Duro Tech Design, founded in 2021, Hayden was able to build a portfolio and make a name for himself in his area. By both hanging and finishing drywall, he and his crew are able to substantially elevate living spaces with a variety of design details, from shadow edges to decorative corners.

A big part of being a modern, design-forward drywall crew, Hayden says, comes down to communicating to his clients what’s even possible with drywall. When most folks think of drywall, they think of white walls and boring interiors — when Hayden thinks of drywall, he sees millions of possibilities.

“It's all about vision,” says Hayden. “You have to be able to look at, essentially, a home or jobsite that is in the raw construction state, being studs, and you have to be able to envision: how are we going to get it from this, to a place that a client will fall in love with? You can mention stuff along the way, like, ‘Oh, that's a beautiful media wall. People's eyes are going to be on that. We could implement some niches in that wall, or some decorative bead around it to elevate that particular spot.’ Then, they go, ‘Oh, what do you mean?’ That's when you pull up the samples and show them, then walk them through the process, and the pricing of each different product, and how you would implement certain things into certain areas to elevate that space.

“It [takes] a little bit of confidence going into it, knowing of what we're capable of, and what we stand behind — we don't cut corners. We finish them.”

Hayden, Trim-Tex and a Lake Muskoka dream home: ‘It’s art.’

Of course, being a pro drywaller with an affinity for modern, trimless design, Hayden is a frequent user of Trim-Tex beads and accessories. (His favorite bead? “Once I discovered the Flat Tear Away,” he tells us, “that was — whew! I fell in love immediately!”)

Recently, Hayden got the opportunity to take his love for that trimless look — and for Trim-Tex — to the next level, when he started work on a custom home project overlooking beautiful Lake Muskoka. For this large, ultra-modern home (pictured throughout this story), Hayden was brought in early enough that he got to make many of the drywall design choices, from drywall-returned windows to doors wrapped in shadow/reveal details.

“It's been about a year now,” Hayden tells us of the project. “One thing you have to keep in mind in the construction process, is you can have a cookie-cutter home that's just copy and paste, but when creating a custom home, having the client's insight and opinion every step of the way, really creates that space for them to be able to call home, and fall in love with. It does take time. That's something you have to take into consideration when going into a custom build of this scale … It's really nice to be able to slow down, take your time, and create something using different products — and step back, and look at it and go, like, it's beautiful. It's art.”

Hayden used Trim-Tex throughout this beautiful home, from the basics to the big swings. For instance, he used our Architectural L Bead for his trimless window returns. For his corners, Jumbo Corner Bead. He used the popular Architectural Z Shadow Bead for that sleek, modern design detail around all the doors, instead of bulky trim. And, on the upper floor, where sloped ceilings created off-angle inside corners, he used our Fast Edge® Roll for a quicker finish with straighter lines.

“You can use Trim-Tex just for your basic finishing, whether it's corner bead or Fast Edge,” Hayden says. “Then you can really elevate your game by incorporating different beads with each other … Having many options available to solve problems on the jobsite makes our lives as contractors a lot easier. The range of options, and the ability to incorporate your creativity within that range, and then to create something  — that's my favorite part.”

Thanks to Hayden for telling us all about his work and his love for Trim-Tex! You can follow Duro Tech Design on Instagram here — and if you’re in the Simcoe County area, do yourself a favor and hire them! 

We publish stories about real contractors like Hayden all the time, along with plenty of tips, how-to guides and case studies. Sign up for our monthly newsletter to never miss another story from Trim-Tex — hit the button below to get started!