Sebastian Clovis

B Y J A Y C O O P E R

Pro Football Player turned Contractor Sebastian Clovis didn’t start as a renovator - he was a pro football player with the BC Lions and was with them when they won the Grey Cup in 2006. He helped carry his University team to 3 national championships in 4 years, winning 2 of them. Having pivoted after football, Sebastian created another winning career renovating homes. He is the host of HGTV’s popular shows ‘Tackle my Reno’, ‘Save my Reno’ and ‘Home to Win’. Watch for his new show ‘Gut Job’ coming up in Spring 2022.

Sebastian loves the Kawarthas and says, “I have a long history of visiting friends cottages in the Kawarthas. It is a destination on my list every year and I always look forward to it.” Visiting friends often means being asked for advice. Sebastian says, “As my skills have been developing I get more invites but every time I show up, and even before we jump in the lake, there’s always the question ‘Would you mind looking at the shingles?’ So these lake side swims come at a different price for me now,” he laughs.

Getting involved with HGTV was a series of serendipitous events. He says, “I was renovating a project when a neighbor pulled up to the house and asked me to do a job, which ended up being for HGTV working behind the scenes. I did the project, but I wasn’t filmed. People on set noticed me and I built a lot of friendships. A few years later I randomly reconnected with the director of that show. They were just starting a new show and unsure of who the host would be. The energy kicked up immediately and 7 days later they shot a sizzle reel with me. A few days later I was filming my own show and I’ve been with them ever since.”

Clovis is not a stranger to reno shows and admits to watching them on television. “I’m a person that dives head long into whatever I’m doing. When I was playing football I would eat, breathe, live it and watch it. Part of being in the trades is to continually sharpen your skills. A great way to do that is by watching those gurus’ shows. Whether it was Scott, Bryan, Holmes, This Old House, or whatever, I would learn things that I didn’t know,” he says.

Sebastian inherited his athletic talents from his parents. He says, “I come from an athletic family. My father was a rugby player until he was 66 years old so we grew up watching him play. It was natural for all 5 kids to excel at sports. My brother Tristan also played in the CFL and won the Grey Cup with the Saskatchewan Roughriders in 2007. My sister is a rugby player and my other brother is also a football player. We all have the athletic gene.” Sebastian’s up-bringing nurtured his career choice. “My father and mother both have DIY skills with lots of home projects to their credit. My parents were well-rounded which allowed us the greatest potential for a bright future.”

His first passion was track and field. He says, “I actually received more scholarship offers for track and field than I did for football (he laughs). But there was no professional track and field so I put my hopes in playing pro football.”

Sebastian has a new show coming up called "Gut Job". He says the amount of challenges in this series is mind blowing. "One of the projects was to gut a house with a two floor reno but the foundation was completely falling apart and the house was sinking. We tore down two of the brick walls from the basement up, braced all of the joists and rebuilt the foundation and exterior. It wasn’t even part of the interior renovation which was the only focus at first. This is the biggest job I have ever seen on any other shows and definitely in my career. Check it out in Spring 2022!”

Budgets can be blown right out the window. He says, “Yes, that’s the reality sometimes. In one episode I walked the homeowners through the reno. There was a lot of tension on set. I knew they had a very healthy budget of $300,000 but I knew I needed another $110,000 to fix all the problems. I can fix it but can’t change the fact that it’s expensive, especially now with material costs and a shortage of labour."

Sebastian admits he can’t do vehicle mechanics and says, “It’s almost embarrassing but my skills are not under the hood of a truck or car. I’m not mechanical. I never took a class or had anyone mentor me. It’s a skill I don’t have, but one day I will.”

His most memorable experience was in 2019. He flew to Saint Lucia to install solar panels on the roof for his 96 year old grandfather, who was an electrician by trade in a home he built by himself 40 years ago. “Watching him smile as I mounted the panels on the roof was very special.”

Sebastian Clovis is easy to talk to. He really cares about his clients and does a beautiful job making their dreams come true. His favourite place is the Kawarthas, “One hundred percent my favourite spot is the Kawarthas in the summer.” We hope to see you next year hanging with friends and giving great advice!

Follow Sebastian on Instagram @sebclovis