295
Elevate was born not from a lifelong plan, but from
experience, curiosity, and a willingness to question the status quo.
Owner and operator Brad Rose began his career as a second-generation
landscaper with Rockscape, the largest design-build-maintain landscape
company in Muskoka, a northern region of Canada known for its rugged
beauty and pristine darkness. After more than 35 years as a family
business, Rockscape operates like a well-oiled machine. Elevate, a smaller
specialty arm focused on landscape lighting, irrigation, and outdoor
audio, was often the forgotten friend.
Following a nearly seven-year hiatus from the family business, Brad
returned and was tasked with taking over Elevate. At the time, it felt like a
practical way to transition back — not a calling. That perspective shifted
during his first year back, when a friend and landscape architect, Virginia
Burt of Virginia Burt Design, invited him to attend an intensive course with
the International Landscape Lighting Institute (iLLi).
ILILELEVATE
MUSKOKA, ON
The experience was transformative. Brad came face to face with his own
perpetuation of poor lighting practices and the realization that a $299 box
of solar lights was never going to deliver thoughtful, lasting results. More
importantly, he discovered that great lighting wasn't about brightness or
quantity — it was about restraint, hierarchy, and understanding how light
interacts with darkness.
Today, Elevate specializes in custom landscape lighting design,
installation, and maintenance throughout Muskoka and Georgian Bay.
Each project is approached with intention, balancing interior and exterior
lighting to create cohesive, understated environments that feel natural
after dark. The goal is not to overpower the landscape, but to reveal it —
quietly, thoughtfully, and in harmony with its surroundings.
Elevate
