Scott Jonathan - It Takes Two: Our Story

Actually, it takes more than two when it comes to capturing a lifetime in 75,000 words, give or take. When we decided to write a memoir, we thought it would be an easy flipno structural damage, toxic exposure, or hidden problems to deal with. Wow, were we wrong. It turned out to be a journey through memories we hadnt thought about in a very long time. More highs and lows than we could have imagined, and a fresh reminder of the incredible people whose support made our biggest reveal possible. Its humbling to think back and realize how many forks weve had in the road and how many folks have helped us choose the right path.

We were blessed from the beginning to be surrounded by wonderful role models who helped teach us about the importance of kindness, respect, compassion, and perseverance. From our incredible teachers at church and school, to our karate sensei, Gary Johnson, who was tough on us but understood that one day the discipline wed learn would be invaluable. Our basketball coach, Mike Shannon, always knew exactly what to say to bring out the best in us... even when we felt like there was nothing left. Shelly Evans, our drama teacher, encouraged us to find our own voices and express our passions by digging deep within to get to the core of who we were. Many of these influences in our lives, who began in positions of authority to us, later became friends and remain a valuable part of our lives today. Nina Fowell comes directly to mind, and she has seen us through almost three decades of our development. No matter where we go or what we do, she takes the time to reach out and ask how WE are and if WE are finding happiness. What started out as a couple of rambunctious twins in her sixth grade class has evolved into a lifelong friendship.

When it comes to our peers, our pals, our partners in crime, completely different criteria establish the impact theyve had on our lives. Lets be honest... wed get up to no good from time to time. Nothing criminal or destructive, but definitely some good old-fashioned mischief. Our closest friends have always been genuine, reliable, trustworthy people. Youll find a lot of similarities in Pedro, Brad, Toni, Jodi, Mike, Simpson, Barb, and the rest of our eclectic mix of compadres. Not only were we comfortable exposing our most embarrassing moments to each other... but we discovered the importance of laughing hard every day. Weve traveled together, lived together, and seen each other through personal triumphs and tragedies. There has never been a situation where we needed one of these guys, and they didnt drop everything to get to us. Thats true friendship.

Our world changed when a company called Cineflix approached us to do what we now know as Property Brothers. There were many hands over the years involved in making it come together, such as Glen Salzman, Katie Ruttan Daigle, Christle Leonard, Gerard Barry, Lindsey Weidhorn, and Jessica Vander Kooij, but in the end we owe a huge debt of gratitude to the whole talented team of TV wizards. We have become like family with our crews for all our shows, and some days were amazed we get any work done because you make us laugh so much. Particularly you, Marnie. After completing the pilot episode, we met our first incredible network partner, Corus, in Canada, where Vibika Bianchi, John MacDonald, Doug Murphy and their team took a big risk on some hosts that were doing things a little differently and a concept that might or might not pay off. Fortunately for all of us, it did. Soon after, the show was picked up in the U.S. by Scripps Networks, and we found remarkable allies in Kathleen Finch, Audrey Adlam, Allison Page, Shannon Driver, Lynne Davis, Loren Ruch, Victoria Chiaro, Abbi McCollum, Santos Lopez, and many more who would once again prove that good, passionate, talented people create even better things together. The relationships have always been ones of mutual respect, open communication, and joint effort. It has paid off in creating something magical that our audiences absolutely love. And speaking of audiences... we legitimately have the most amazing fans in the world. We love every opportunity we get to meet them face to face to show our gratitude. Your support is what fuels us through the long hours and grueling schedule.

When our world evolved and our television careers took off, we really needed to grow our team to ensure we could keep up. We have a few simple rules: First, we work with passionate people who love what theyre doing and are genuinely great at it. Second, we only work with people that we like to work with. Sounds simple, but in reality its harder to find than you would expect. Matt Horowitz was one of our first hires, when we were still mostly unknown. He has all of the good attributes of an amazing agent, but also a soul. His guidance, advice, and friendship have been invaluable and have definitely helped steer our ever-growing ship in the right direction. He heads our hard-working team at CAA, including Carla Laur, Cait Hoyt, Stephanie Paciullo, Kate Childs, and a ton of other brilliant people who work tirelessly with our legal guru David Dembroski to keep us in line. We pride ourselves in being easy to work with... though our business is QUITE complex.

There are so many people weve worked with in the past who really did help make us a household name. There was our first publicist, Alina Goldstein Duviner, who well never forget meeting during the launch of the first season of Property Brothers. She looked us right in the eye and said, Were going to make this show a hit. She was right. There was also The Door in NYC, who propelled us to the next level and personified what it meant to have a think tank of creative masterminds.

Inevitably over time, we grew our internal team to reflect the precision and efficiencies weve always strived to achieve in all our businesses. Lance, Josie, Richard, Christina, Stephanie, Rachel, Ashley, Amara, Ydo, Vanessa, and the rest of Team Scott are simply rock stars. Weve always wanted to run a company that people love to work for and boasts an environment that keeps the team members challenged but excited to come in every day. We pulled it off, and are so proud of the squad weve assembled. They enable us to take on far more than we could ever do on our own while still keeping the bar raised higher than anybody else in the business. It allows us to pursue passion projects like this book which, thanks to our hero and editor, Justin Schwartz, and the HMH teamMarina Padakis Lowry, Tai Blanche, Rita Sowins, and Eugenie S. Delaneywere sure will be another big success. Tamara, well admit the way you cracked the whip to get the good stuff out of us is simply superb.

If youve noticed... we dont do anything half-assed. We also dont pursue business relationships for the short term. We want relationships that are going to last and people we want to keep around for a very long time. Its the only way to build a legacy brand. But if you were to strip back all of the business and all of the shows and focus on the people who have personally had the most impact on us, its family and the loves of our lives. Our parents, Jim and Joanne, you absolutely astonish us with your infinite love and support. You brought us into this world, but you also made us shine. Our brother JD, you have always been an ear if we needed to talk, muscle if we needed help, and right there when we needed anything. Thank you for putting up with a couple of annoying little clones your whole life. Weve always looked up to you, big brother. We also cant forget Gracie and Stewie, because even though theyre fur-babies... theyre part of the family, and even while writing this sentence, theyre staring up at us with unwavering love and devotion. Or maybe they just want to be fed. LOL.