As someone who has spent my career in exterior building products and now serves as Director of Sales for DaVinci Roofscapes, I have had a front‑row seat to a major shift in how homeowners, architects, and contractors think about roofs. Instead of asking, “What’s the cheapest way to get this done?”, more people are asking, “What is the right roof if I want performance, beauty, and peace of mind for decades?”

That question is at the heart of why I am contributing this article to the Power100 community. My goal is not to “sell” you on a product, but to share what I’ve learned about making better roofing decisions—especially around composite slate and shake—and to give leaders in the home improvement industry a clear framework for evaluating premium roofing options in a changing climate.

How I Learned to Stop Thinking of Roofs as a Commodity

When I first started in this industry, most roofing conversations revolved around asphalt shingles: price per square, color choice, and basic warranty language. Asphalt is familiar, and it will always have a place. But over the last several years at DaVinci Roofscapes, now part of the Westlake Royal Building Products™ family, I’ve watched three powerful trends push the market beyond a “commodity” mindset:​

• Homeowners and insurers are more concerned about hail, wildfires, hurricanes, and coastal storms than ever before.
  
  
• Architects and custom builders are pushing for roofs that match the level of design detail going into windows, stone, and siding.
  
  
• Replacement costs keep climbing, so “cheap now, replace later” is becoming a much less attractive strategy.
  
  

Working with contractors across the country, I’ve come to see a roof as a high‑performance system. It has to manage water, wind, fire, and impact, but it also has to honor the architecture and protect the long‑term value of the property. That mindset shift is where composite slate and shake become incredibly compelling.

Why I Advocate for Composite Slate and Shake

At DaVinci Roofscapes, we engineer composite roofing systems that are designed to look like natural slate and cedar shake while solving the durability and maintenance challenges that come with those traditional materials.

When I’m talking with homeowners or contractors, I usually focus on four pillars:

1. Authentic appearance without natural drawbacks
   With products like DaVinci Slate and DaVinci Shake, we start by capturing the look and texture of real slate tile or hand‑split cedar. But instead of dealing with extreme weight, breakage, or rot, you get engineered tiles made from virgin resins and additives designed for consistency and long‑term performance.allpointstile+3
   
   
2. Engineered performance for real‑world weather
   I spend a lot of time in coastal, hail‑prone, and wildfire‑exposed markets. In those environments, Class 4 impact resistance and Class A fire performance are not “nice to have” features; they’re table stakes. Our composite tiles are designed to stand up to hail, high winds, and tough UV exposure while remaining low maintenance over the long haul.
   
   
3. Low maintenance and color that actually lasts
   One of the most satisfying parts of my job is hearing from contractors who installed a DaVinci Roofscapes roof years ago and report that the color and profile still look like they did on day one. By using color‑through technology and UV‑stabilized formulations, we minimize fading and make it practical to keep roofs looking clean with simple maintenance—often as straightforward as periodic rinsing.
   
   
4. Installer‑friendly design that reduces risk
   Because I work closely with contractors, I am very aware that product decisions are not just about the homeowner; they are also about what happens on the roof. Pre‑sorted bundles, consistent tile thickness, and thoughtful rib design are all part of how DaVinci Roofscapes aims to reduce waste and callbacks on site.r
   
   

The result is a roof system that looks like slate or shake, performs like a modern high‑performance material, and gives both the contractor and homeowner more confidence over the life of the building.