Leadership in outdoor living solutions involves guiding teams to create and improve outdoor spaces while helping individuals achieve their vision. Important skills for this role include effective communication, teamwork, flexibility, and the ability to make quick decisions. By engaging in outdoor leadership, leaders and their teams can have transformative experiences that promote growth.
Leslie Chapus, the Vice President and Co-Founder, of Azenco Outdoor, is dedicated to turning outdoor living spaces into personalized areas for relaxation and enjoyment. With 15 years of experience in the industry, she leads Azenco’s efforts in global expansion and international strategy. Additionally, she manages the coordination between the distribution network, material suppliers, and marketing teams.
Bringing Passion to Life
Azenco Outdoor was created by Leslie Chapus and her husband Charles out of a shared passion for helping people truly enjoy their outdoor spaces. Leslie has always loved designing and creating environments that make people feel at home. The journey began with a vision to combine beauty and practicality in a way that enhances everyday living.
One of Leslie Chapus biggest challenges has been growing the business while remaining focused on the customer. Balancing rapid growth with maintaining personal relationships with clients and partners has been rewarding and demanding for her.
Making Outdoor Living Better
Azenco Outdoor is a leading company reimagining outdoor living. Built on the principles of quality, innovation, and customer satisfaction, it has become a trusted brand throughout North America. The company’s goal is to create innovative solutions that truly transform outdoor spaces, paying close attention to consumers’ desires.
Azenco’s premium outdoor products combine style and functionality while prioritizing sustainability. The company’s mission is to inspire people to fully enjoy their outdoor spaces, whether at home or in commercial settings, by encouraging them to spend more time outside in the sunlight and fresh air. In today’s world, where technology is advancing rapidly, Azenco Outdoor believes it is essential for people to maintain a healthy life balance by creating opportunities for enjoying time alone or with friends and family in outdoor environments that extend their living spaces.
Quality Outdoor Solutions
Azenco Outdoor specializes in a variety of premium outdoor solutions, including aluminum pergolas with motorized louvered roofs, carports, cabanas, and patio covers. Each product is carefully designed to enhance outdoor spaces and provide comfort, versatility, and protection.
Whether it’s for a cozy backyard retreat or a sophisticated commercial installation, Azenco Outdoor’s products are engineered to elevate outdoor living by combining functionality with aesthetic appeal, catering to a wide range of needs and preferences.
The Early Challenges
In the beginning, one of Azenco Outdoor’s biggest challenges was educating the market about the benefits of high-quality, customizable outdoor solutions. Establishing credibility and building a dependable dealer network also required considerable effort. However, these challenges motivated Azenco Outdoor and its founders to improve their strategies and develop strong, lasting relationships with partners and customers.
Innovation with Care
For Azenco Outdoor, balancing the need for innovation with the need for stability and profitability relies on strategic decision-making. The company takes calculated risks by carefully analyzing market trends and testing new ideas before implementing them on a larger scale. This method allows Azenco Outdoor to stay innovative without risking the company’s stability.
Azenco Outdoor ensures that its innovations meet market demands while also maintaining a healthy profit margin by continually engaging with customers and keeping an eye on industry changes.
Innovation is central to Azenco Outdoor’s approach. The company stays competitive by encouraging creativity among its team, building strong industry partnerships, and continuously evolving its product offerings to meet customer needs. By remaining proactive and adaptive, Azenco Outdoor stays at the forefront of its industry.
Smart Risk-Taking
At Azenco Outdoor, risk-taking is viewed as a vital part of innovation, but it is always approached with caution. The company conducts a thorough market analysis to understand potential challenges and opportunities. It starts small by launching pilot projects, which allows them to test ideas without committing significant resources upfront.
Additionally, during these pilot phases, Azenco Outdoor actively seeks feedback to refine its strategies. This disciplined approach enables the company to take bold steps while minimizing potential risks.
Collaborating for Success
Azenco Outdoor’s strategy for driving the company forward in terms of products and services is rooted in listening to customers and staying attuned to industry trends.
The company collaborates closely with architects, builders, and end-users to understand their evolving needs and preferences. This valuable feedback, combined with ongoing research and development efforts, allows Azenco Outdoor to innovate and expand its offerings in ways that resonate with the market. By staying customer-centric and proactively addressing emerging demands, Azenco Outdoor is able to set new benchmarks in the industry and deliver solutions that exceed customer expectations.
The Breakthrough Product and Growth Statistics
The launch of the R-BLADE™ motorized louvered pergola marked a significant turning point for Azenco Outdoor. This product’s capability to adjust to different weather conditions while combining style and functionality resonated strongly with customers. This innovation drove the company’s growth and established Azenco Outdoor as a leader in the industry.
- Aluminum Usage:The company now uses over 6.5 million pounds of aluminum each year.
- Dealer Network: Azenco Outdoor has expanded its dealer network to cover the entire United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.
- Revenue Growth:Over the past three years, Azenco Outdoor has consistently achieved more than 40% year-over-year revenue growth.
Long-Standing Success and New Opportunities
Azenco Outdoor’s long-standing success comes from its strong commitment to quality and innovation. The company builds trust with its customers and partners by consistently delivering on its promises. By staying true to its core values and being open to change, Azenco Outdoor has created a solid foundation for continued success.
A recent successful development for Azenco Outdoor is its acquisition by Hunter Douglas Outdoor. This partnership is expected to create exciting new product synergies that will lead to significant success in the future. By integrating their strong experience and shared commitment to providing high-quality products, both companies will showcase the best of their technologies together in 2025.
Nurturing Talent and Empowering Teams
Finding and nurturing talent is crucial for growth at Azenco Outdoor. Leslie Chapus looks for individuals who offer fresh ideas and share a commitment to excellence. Mentorship is an important part of this process. It involves providing guidance, building confidence, and helping team members realize their full potential. Leslie has been fortunate to have mentors in her life, especially her husband and business partner, who have influenced her journey. She aims to provide the same support to others by creating a nurturing and empowering environment for her team.
Transforming Outdoor Living with Tech
Azenco Outdoor has changed the traditional way of working by emphasizing customization and incorporating advanced technology into outdoor solutions. This focus has disrupted standard practices in the industry and established a new benchmark for what outdoor spaces can accomplish.
Technology has played a crucial role in providing a seamless experience for customers at Azenco Outdoor. Users can easily control features like motorized louvers and screens by incorporating advanced automation into their products.
With smart home integration, these products offer unmatched convenience and customization, making outdoor living more enjoyable and accessible. This focus on technology ensures that customers have effortless control over their outdoor spaces, enhancing their overall experience.
Leadership Philosophy
Leslie Chapus believes that leadership is about inspiration, empowerment, and accountability. Her philosophy focuses on creating a culture of trust and collaboration, where everyone feels heard and valued.
To ensure this philosophy is reflected throughout the organization, she emphasizes clear communication, regular engagement with the team, and leading by example. It is important to her that the shared values of innovation and excellence are evident in the company’s internal culture and the products it delivers.
5 Key Takeaways from Leslie Chapus’s Empowering Journey
- Leslie Chapus and her husband’s shared passion for creating beautiful and functional outdoor spaces is the foundation of Azenco Outdoor’s success. Their dedication to this vision has fueled the company’s growth.
- Balancing rapid growth with maintaining personal relationships with clients and partners has been a key factor in Azenco Outdoor’s success. It prioritizes understanding and meeting customer needs.
- Azenco Outdoor constantly strives to innovate and improve its products, like the R-BLADE™ pergola, to meet evolving customer demands and stay competitive in the market. It carefully analyzes trends and takes calculated risks.
- Azenco Outdoor emphasizes collaboration with architects, builders, and customers to understand their needs. Internally, Leslie Chapus fosters a culture of trust and empowerment within her team.
- While Azenco Outdoor embraces innovation, it also approaches risk strategically. The company conducts thorough market analysis and tests new ideas through pilot projects before full implementation, minimizing potential downsides.
