Breaking Ground, Building Dreams

How one bold leap reshaped communities across Edmonton

Born to Italian immigrants who valued hard work and opportunity, George Cantalini first worked in finance before discovering a passion for real estate and construction. Cantalini took a leap, acquiring a land development company that, along with his business mentor and friend, Tony Cairo, would grow into the Cantiro group, a multi-faceted land development, homebuilding and community-building enterprise. Along the way, Cantalini has navigated economic highs and lows, championed a people-first approach to leadership, and built a legacy of communities that house the people of Alberta. This is his story.

What first sparked your interest in land development and construction?

I actually started out as a chartered accountant but the truth is, I never really loved accounting. When I was auditing, I worked on a few real estate companies and found them far more interesting than the others. So, when I decided to leave accounting, I looked for a job in real estate doing special projects.

That’s how I ended up with Tridel in Toronto. One opportunity there was to open a new office in Edmonton. I was supposed to just fly back and forth, but I spent so much time in Edmonton that I moved here in the early ’90s.

My interest in construction goes back even further. As a kid, my godfather was a finishing carpenter, and I worked with him during summer jobs. I was always fascinated watching how things got built. I guess it was in my blood.

You took over Beaverbrook, a land developing company, in 1995. How did that happen?

When I joined, the company was called Beaverbrook, which was a subsidiary of Tridel. In 1995, Tridel wanted to exit the Edmonton market. They offered me the chance to wind things down, sell off the assets, and move back to Toronto.

But my friend and mentor, Tony Cairo, told me, “You have the curse of a good paycheque.” Coming from immigrant parents who believed in getting an education, a good job, and security for life, I didn’t know what he meant at first. But when we talked about it, he helped me realize that I could always go back to being an accountant, so why not take the chance to buy a company for next to nothing and rebuild it?

I told Tony, “You think it’s such a good idea? You do the legal work, I’ll do the rest.” That’s how I ended up owning Beaverbrook, which at the time was just land development.

From there, we expanded—in 2008 we started Dolce Vita Homes for single-family housing. In 2015, we launched InHouse by Beaverbrook for multifamily, and a commercial division called Beaverbrook Commercial. In 2020, we decided to merge everything under one brand. That’s when Cantiro Group was born, from a combination of my last name, Cantalini, and Cairo.

When you look back at those early days, how did your vision compare to what Cantiro has become today?

It’s way beyond anything I imagined. I never sat there thinking about how big or expansive we’d get. I just saw opportunities and went for them—always making sure we had the right people and resources in place.

I get bored easily, so doing the same thing over and over isn’t for me. I love challenges, trying new things, and watching both projects and people grow. Many of our employees have been with us for years. It’s not just my vision anymore; it’s our team’s vision and culture that drive us forward.

What challenges have you faced and how did you get through them?

In Edmonton, the market is tied closely to oil and gas, so we’ve been through plenty of cycles—the downturn in the mid-’90s, the 1999 oil drop, the 2008 financial crisis, the 2014 oil crash, and of course, the pandemic.

The pandemic was the most surreal. We were just coming out of the ground with a 23-storey high-rise when the world shut down. We didn’t know if we should stop or keep going. Instead of laying people off, we kept all our staff and cut costs. Executives took bigger pay cuts than the rest, and when things turned around, we were able to give the money back to our employees.

I’ve always believed that downturns are opportunities for the strong to rise. People still needed homes, maybe even more so after spending so much time in them. We were financially conservative and had resources to ride it out. Communication with our team was constant, keeping everyone informed and positive until the market rebounded.

How has your leadership style evolved?

I never saw myself as a leader early on. I’ve learned that leadership is about treating people the way you’d want to be treated. I lead more by example than by words, and I believe in giving people opportunities like I was given. Being present, empathetic, and human matters. I don’t expect anyone to do more than I would, and I try to make sure people have the support they need to succeed.

What advice would you give to your younger self or someone starting out?

Find mentors early and join peer groups. You’ll realize you’re not alone, and you can learn from others going through similar challenges. And maybe take leadership training earlier than I did. I’ve been fortunate to have great mentors, employees, and family support. Sometimes the best thing you can do as a leader is get out of the way and let people take the lead, even if they do things differently than you would.

Treat people well. Always look for a better way to do something—innovation is key. Do the right thing for both employees and customers. Stay entrepreneurial and never get complacent; if you stop improving, you’ll be left behind.

If I wouldn’t live in one of our own communities, I wouldn’t build it. I also believe in giving back. We want to support causes that make a difference in the places we work. At the end of the day, doing the right thing always comes back to you.