The biggest change I've seen in driveway finishes over the last 5 years

I've been doing concrete finishing for about 12 years now, mostly residential driveways around the suburbs. And the biggest before-and-after difference I've noticed is how people want their driveways to look. Five years ago everyone was all about the broom finish, you know, just a standard gray slab with some texture. Now? I swear 7 out of 10 customers want some kind of exposed aggregate or stamped pattern. I did a job last month in Oakville where the homeowner showed me a picture from Pinterest of a stained and stamped driveway that looked like cobblestone. The before was just a plain slab, the after had this warm brown color with a slate pattern pressed in. What caused the shift? I think it's social media honestly, people see these fancy finishes on Instagram or Houzz and they don't want the basic stuff anymore. It's made the job trickier too, more prep work and way more cleanup. Has anyone else seen this huge swing in customer expectations over the last few years?

2 comments

2 Comments

oliver_wilson491mo ago

Bet they never warned you about the broom finish upcharge, huh.

hannahw301mo ago

Did your friend end up paying it or just leave it rough? My buddy Tom had the same thing happen, he just left the concrete unfinished and called it "rustic" lol.