About Headwaters Painting
our story
Meet Ryan & Danie Turry
Owners of Headwaters Painting
Headwaters Painting was established in 2015 by MN native, Ryan Turry…
This is where you are probably expecting to read a story about a kid who grew up in or around the painting trade and is now operating a painting business on his own. This is not that story.
Ryan grew up in Forest Lake, MN with parents who weren’t painters (his Dad a Dentist and Mom an Elementary Teacher) but, since he can remember knew he wanted to operate his own business.
Ryan attended the University of Minnesota (Go Gophers!) and graduated with a Housing Studies degree with a concentration in Finance and Management. He initially thought flipping houses in investment Real Estate would lead him down the path of Entrepreneurship, but soon found it simply wasn’t a good fit for him. So, since adulting requires a paycheck and he was fortunate to have a degree, he joined the corporate world where he worked as a Financial Advisor and then an Investment Consultant. To no surprise of his own, Ryan quickly found that working behind a desk along with a deep desire to work with his hands and own his own business, weren’t compatible…
After many months of contemplating, research, and lots of praying- It suddenly made complete sense to him; he always enjoyed painting, loved working with his hands, and after many frustrations of working with a variety of contractors flipping houses, felt he could deliver a quality service at no expense of a quality experience. So, Ryan began his painting business on the side and eventually with a hesitant, but supportive “stamp of approval” from his wife, quit his secure desk job and established Headwaters Painting as his full-time business in 2015. Bonus: His incredibly hard-working and talented wife, Danie, joined forces with him in 2017!
Because of his passion for the craft of painting, Ryan learned extremely quickly through education by connecting with other leaders in the industry and being part of the PCA. Although he finally feels like he is living out his passion- starting and running a successful business has come with hard work and set-backs, but he is eager to keep learning and growing through every experience on this exciting journey.
Ryan truly loves operating a business where he gets to meet new people, make connections, and bring life to the Interior and Exterior of their home.
Ryan and Danie are both proud MN Natives and currently reside in NE Minneapolis with their spunky daughter, Zelda, and their dog and cat, Boo and Fern. They love the comforts of home- hosting friends and family during any season or cozying up for a night of wine and Netflix (because who doesn’t) and exploring their neighborhood by getting out to local restaurants and breweries. What excites them more is being able to explore and travel when they get the chance- they are always up for a little adventure away from home.
In their free time, Danie and Ryan enjoy the lakes by fishing and boating (Ryan’s proposal may have involved a tackle box and an old aluminum fishing boat), trips to the family cabin, cooking, staying active, reading, watching their daughter learn and grow, and spending time with their incredible friends and family.
Before deciding to operate Headwaters Painting alongside her husband, Danie worked in Special Education for almost 10 years. As much as she loved the daily challenge, variety, and rewards in her position- it was also becoming extremely draining and she knew she needed to make a change. After watching Ryan grow (and become extremely busy) with the business, Danie decided to take a leap and join forces with Ryan in 2017 to partner in maintaining and growing Headwaters Painting. She is in charge of administration and HR duties such as client communication and scheduling, setting up color consultation, marketing, business development, and more. Although this role is a big (and at times overwhelming) change for her, she is enjoying working as a husband and wife team that enables her freedom, creativity, and satisfaction in doing something challenging!
