The Ledge Founder Story

Christopher Anderson

“Think about Steve Jobs,” says Ledge founder Christopher Anderson. “If we only created what people told us they wanted, we wouldn’t have some of our best products.”

In that spirit, Anderson, a visionary himself, opened an entirely new category in outdoor design when he launched Ledge, the lifestyle brand that forever changed the way people spend their leisure time together around the pool, and in their own backyards.

“Tanning ledges were becoming popular in pools, but there was nothing to put on them,” Anderson says. “I wanted to design something beautiful to get people excited about their outdoor spaces.” He began to create sleek, stylish, comfortable pool furniture, and designed the first signature chaise made to be placed in the water. And then he realized something else. “Twenty years ago, pool builders historically thought about the pool,” says Anderson, “but there is more to the outdoor space than the pool. I wanted to craft backyard spaces that provide stress-free times together where you can put your phone down, live a carefree moment, and balance a cocktail or mocktail while you float in the pool.” What he did was create more than a brand. He changed the scope of pool-building and inspired a lifestyle.

A Houston native and father of three young boys, Anderson always had a flair for design and construction. He studied construction management at Louisiana State University, then took a quick turn into advertising and marketing at the Dallas Morning News, where he sold digital media. But with an artistic mother and entrepreneurial father, the urge to create never left him, and Anderson eventually returned home to join his father’s pool company, a pivotal move that inspired the launch of Ledge.

Some people are just destined to think big, and Anderson is one of them. While working with his dad, the realization hit that something was missing from America’s backyards. Anderson had his “a-ha moment” when he realized that the pool and the overall poolscape could function as “an outdoor oasis,” essentially, an extra room outdoors where friends can gather, families can connect in a busy world and individuals can carve out quiet time to relax.

When he created the first Ledge collection in 2011–sophisticated, sustainable pool loungers, artisanally crafted to last forever–Anderson disrupted the industry by filling a void no one even knew was there. Along with superb product innovation and superior design, he created a new leisure lifestyle paradigm, which he mapped out not only from a useability but sociability perspective. “I love to design backyard relaxation and entertainment spaces on my computer, build them, and see how they all come alive, holistically, when people use them.”

Anderson is passionate about creating enhanced outdoor environments that encourage people to relax and connect, moving beyond product design to the experiences of the people who use them. “The products are meant to take the stress out of entertaining and spending time in your backyard,” says Anderson, “by being reliable, comfortable and beautiful.” His goal? To create a feel-good environment with products that delight and surprise people, he says. The Ledge motto? “Let us put in the care so that you can be carefree.”

The first Ledge piece–the now-iconic Signature Chaise Lounger-- with flowing curves that allow for a refreshing cooldown when submerged in the water–was an instant bestseller, and still is. Under Anderson’s direction, Ledge has expanded into stylish patio furniture, luxury pool floats, pool games and backyard entertainment. The in-pool Autograph Standard Side Table features a lid that lifts to store cell phones, sunscreen, sunglasses. The IceBin Side Tables are ingenious in-pool ice chests that store ice for cocktails and mocktails. A Ping Pong Table features a retractable shelf that holds drinks, paddles, and, of course, ping pong balls. The Laze Collection’s Laze Float is popular in pools and–a Texas favorite–lazy rivers.

The idea of making people happy is baked into the company DNA along with core values such as loyalty, ethics, drive, grace and the courage to evolve. Within five years after its launch, Ledge grew from two to over 200 employees who enjoy a corporate culture that takes care of its team members as well as customers. Anderson set out to create a values-driven company built on the same sensibility he shares with Ledge customers: an easy flow between people, products and lifestyle.

Anderson and childhood friend Dylan Schrader, his partner in building the business, have always been drawn to water. Tubing and floating down rivers and splashing in local watering holes is a popular way to cool down in the hot Texas summer. According to Schrader, “We’re outdoors people. We spent our childhood swimming and floating in the local rivers around Houston, or we’d find a friend with a pool. In the summer, I don’t know if we had a weekend that we didn’t spend near the water.”

Their talents complement one another beautifully. Anderson comes up with ideas and sketches them out, while Schrader, an aerospace engineer and former McKinsey & Company consultant, figures out how to execute them. The flow is as seamless and transparent as the glass wall they share at the Katy, Texas, office and showroom. “Having the relationship we have, it is easy to overcome conflict, lean on each other and grow the business together,” says Schrader. Even as children, the two were innovative and entrepreneurial: “Chris and I pulled a red wagon around the neighborhood and figured out ways to make money,” says Schrader. “We washed cars, mowed lawns, and helped out the neighbors.”

Anderson still enjoys spending time outdoors on his boat, in nature, with family and friends in the backyard. He loves to entertain at home and what makes him happy is seeing other people having a good time. Ledge is all about inspiring people to share moments and memories and creating a beautiful environment to do it in. According to Schrader, the vision for Ledge is increasingly expanding beyond the backyard pool, “Not everyone has a pool, but a lot of people have backyards,” he says. “We can take the Ledge lifestyle to the patio, backyard, riverfront, lakefront, mountainside.” Ledge sells directly to consumers as well as high-end hotel groups such as the Ritz Carlton, Moxy and W, to name a few.

“We have to be the visionaries for what’s possible in the backyard,” says Anderson, “and create innovative new products that help people delight in entertaining with family and friends. It makes the heart beat a little harder and pulls emotion out of people when you can connect them,” he continues. But the experience he’s after is not only rooted at home, right in your own backyard. It’s also transportive.

“Ledge loungers make you forget about the world,” Anderson says. “When you close your eyes, you can imagine yourself in the Maldives or Cabo. That’s the experience we’re trying to bring into the pool.”