Our story
Before there was a showroom, there was a kid mowing yards in Fort Worth.
Dustin Hillman was born and raised in Fort Worth. He graduated from Southwest High School, attended Tarleton State University, and has spent more than 20 years in outdoor living. His career started with mowing yards and grew into managing large-scale, high-end masonry projects. He later operated a landscape supply yard serving builders, contractors and homeowners.
Along the way he saw one project split across too many conversations: design in one place, construction in another, furnishings somewhere else. His answer was a company that brings outdoor living, construction and retail together under one roof.
Chelsy Hillman graduated from the University of Arizona in Retailing & Consumer Sciences and built her career with The Home Depot and Dickies. At The Collective Outdoors she leads retail and special projects: merchandising, purchasing, inventory strategy and the showroom experience.
Today Dustin and Chelsy lead TCO as owners, with one team handling design, construction and the showroom.
Wording to confirm with Dustin, including whether to describe TCO as a family business. No other family details are used.
Headshot-to-name match inferred from page order on TCO's site. To confirm.
How we got here
- 2006A large construction project at Possum Kingdom begins Dustin's move into outdoor construction.
- 2016Panther City Arbor & Patio begins in Fort Worth.
- August 11, 2018The Collective Outdoors showroom at 621 South Freeway holds its grand opening.
- TodayDesign, construction and the showroom work as one team.
Sources: TCO team bios; archived Panther City Arbor & Patio pages; BBB records; 2018 Fort Worth Business Press coverage.
Questions for Dustin before this page goes live
- Which founding year to feature: 2016 (Panther City Arbor & Patio), 2017 (TCO per BBB and Instagram), or the 2018 showroom opening?
- How to describe Panther City Arbor & Patio: "formerly", "sister company", or "now TCO Design Build"?
- Whether to say "family-owned" and how to describe Dustin and Chelsy.
- Whether 2018 press coverage naming another co-founder should be addressed. This draft does not infer current ownership from old press.
- An owners' photo, and an early-days photo if available.
Start with a conversation
Tell us how you want to cook and gather outside.
We'll talk through your space and the right next step: a site visit or a showroom appointment. This is a consultation, not an online estimate.