Big50 Articles

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    Patrick Benkowski of Roadrunner Custom Remodeling

    Since trading the chilly winters of Milwaukee for the hot summers of Arizona, Patrick Benkowski has never looked back. The former owner of Custom Design Associates, and a Big50 in 1991, settled in the booming Phoenix market six years ago. “I loved the Midwest, and my family is back there, but I...

     
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    Second Look: Mark Labourdette

    When Mark Labourdette was named Big50 in 2001, his company, GGHR Inc., revolved around him. He thought there must be a better way to be in business, without being the business.

     
  • How to qualify prospective clients

    How do you qualify prospective clients?

     
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    Robert Chew: a leading player in a sophisticated industry

    Thirty years after he got into the solar business, Bob Chew (Big50 1987) is happy to be back where he started. Only instead of being an early adopter of a technology that relied on federal support, he's a leading player in a sophisticated industry whose future seems assured.

     
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    Bonding with the trades

    Strong relationships with subcontractors are a vital part of the success of Hopkins & Porter, and the Potomac, Md., company uses both formal and informal methods to bond with its trade contractors.

     
  • Followup: Should Remodelers Test for Drug Use?

    The "no" response from this month's "Big 50 Face Off," which asked, "Should remodelers test their employees for drug use?" came from Greg Antonioli (Big50 2006) of Out of the Woods Construction & Cabinetry, Arlington, Mass.

     
  • Opposing opinions on drug testing in the workplace

    Opposing opinions on drug testing in the workplace.

     
  • Second Look: Merlyn Vandervort II

    When he was awarded Big50 in 1996, Merlyn Vandervort owned Metro Renovators, one of the nation's largest disaster reconstruction companies.

     
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    Profile of Disaster Restoration's Michael Griggs

    It's not lust but the survival instinct that drives homeowners and disaster restoration companies straight into bed together. Fire, vandalism, water damage — whatever the impetus, the relationship that ensues is more complex than many remodelers realize, says Michael Griggs (Big50 1995). His $12.5...

     
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    Field supervisor turns to filmmaking

    A second look at Chuck Green