// COMPANY DOSSIER
rcs construction inc.
Atlantic Canadian general contractor and construction manager delivering commercial, retail, hospitality, institutional, multi-storey residential and industrial projects across all four Atlantic provinces. Founded in 1996 as a specialized retail contractor doing 'live' grocery-store renovations, it has grown into a mid-sized regional GC operating from a Bedford, NS head office with regional offices in Moncton and St. John's.
📍 Bedford, Nova Scotia, CanadaEst. 1996✓ 100% first-party verified
// LESSONS FROM rcs construction inc.
Process is the bridge from a small company to a mid-sized one — most employees need process to deliver consistently, regardless of who the client deals with.
Installing an operating system (EOS/Traction) — including firing key staff not in the right seats — took RCS from roughly $60M to $100M in sales in two years.
Profit papers over partner conflict; the real test of a partnership only arrives when the money stops — RCS's partner breakups came in the 2009 downturn.
Apply the 20/60/20 rule: don't try to move people two notches — give the average 60% process and tools instead of trying to rescue underachievers.
Pay sub-trades within 48 hours of receiving the owner's check, as written policy — it built 25 years of trade loyalty with only one lawsuit, settled out of court.
Treat sub-trades like your own employees: on negotiated CM work, shortlist three capable trades rather than sole-sourcing, and pay up front when a sub is short on cash.
// ALSO DISCUSSED ACROSS THE SHOW
// SELECTED PROJECTS
Avalon Mall Redevelopment
CompletedGeneral contractor
Multi-phase interior renovations, building expansions, upgraded parking and intersection redesign for owner Crombie REIT; 114,105 sf delivered (completed Sept 2020) while the mall stayed fully operational. Owner Crombie's overall program was reported at ~$112M (RENX) but that is the owner's investment, not RCS's contract value, so value is left blank.
TRU Hotel Yarmouth (by Hilton)
CompletedGeneral contractor · ~$10.8 million
Full design and construction of a new four-storey, 89-room, 52,000 sf hotel for Acadia First Nation; Sept 2019 - Sept 2020. Value (~$10.8M) is stated on RCS's own project page.
Margaret Norrie McCain Centre for Teaching, Learning and Research
CompletedConstruction management
Four-storey, ~49,000 sf concrete multipurpose academic facility (lecture halls, study rooms, atrium, courtyard) for MSVU; completed April 2015.
Élan Luxury Apartment
CompletedConstruction management / base building
60-unit, ~120,000 sf luxury apartment build for Fox Creek Limited Partnership; completed February 2019. Anchors NB regional relevance.
Microtel Summerside
CompletedDesign-build contractor
Hospitality base-building / design-build, ~36,000 sf, dated January 2023. Anchors PEI regional relevance across the four-province footprint.
// KEY PEOPLE
// NOTABLE
Named one of Canada's Best Managed Companies (2025), the Deloitte-led national program.
SOURCE ▸Founded in 1996, originally incorporated as 'Retail Construction Specialists' doing live grocery-store renovations (Pete's Frootique / Sobeys); rebranded to 'rcs construction inc.' in 2004.
SOURCE ▸Operates a Bedford, NS head office (26 Topsail Court) plus regional offices in Moncton, NB (88 Albert Street) and St. John's, NL (26 Mews Place).
SOURCE ▸Building like this in Atlantic Canada?
Be a guest ▸