BooCo Construction Inc. performs ground-up construction, as well as many remodeling projects in the Northwest.

Commercial and retail contractor BooCo Construction Inc. takes its personal relationships seriously. The company has been successful, President Ken Booster says, because of its relationships with people. “We value our relationships with subcontractors and vendors, owners and architects,” he says. “Most people in this industry recognize the need to work together and I feel we do a good job of that. It makes life easier when you have good relationships.”

Construction is a “small world,” Booster continues, “and we don’t want to burn bridges. Work is just work, even if it’s my own company.” The secret, he notes, is good people and to get along with everyone all the time. “Have fun always and all ways,” he says.

The Portland, Ore.-based firm has enjoyed continuous growth since it was founded in 2003. The company performs ground-up construction, but the bulk of its business is in remodeling facilities in the Northwest. “Our expertise is in facilities that remain fully operational while we’re remodeling,” Booster explains. “After the successful completion of a recent remodel project, the client said we were like ghosts. This was a huge compliment and a goal of ours … to get the work done with as little an impact to the clients and their customers as possible.

“Even though we are ‘ghost-like,’ there is a huge presence of BooCo people on-site to keep [the project] safe and shoppable. These traits are what clients are looking for.”

BooCo’s 2007 projects include the ground-up construction of a new 2,500-square-foot Panda Express restaurant in Albany, Ore.; a ground-up construction of a new 148,000- square-foot Fred Meyer retail store in Vancouver, Wash.; a major remodel of an existing 162,000-square-foot Fred Meyer in Tacoma; an expansion of Macy’s women’s shoe department in Tigard, Ore.; and two Safeway lifestyle remodels in Portland and St. Helens, Ore. Fixture installation jobs include a 159,332-square-foot JC Penney, also in Tigard; seven Fred Meyer remodels and two new Fred Meyer stores in Oregon and Washington.

One of the company’s long-term clients is retail chain Fred Meyer. BooCo has completed more than 80 projects of various sizes and scope for Fred Meyer, including stores in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Alaska.

What makes BooCo the No. 1 choice is its integrity, Booster says. “We do what we say we’re going to do [while staying on] schedule,” he stresses. “We can be candid and brutally honest. Clients appreciate that. They don’t want to be led down the trail. We do good work and we do it right the first time. Our goal is [to have] zero punch list, and when we turn projects over, we’re done. We like to think we provide high-quality work at a fair price at all times.”

Taking a Chance
The four-year-old company credits its success to its ability to follow through, Booster notes. “We pay a lot of attention to construction documents,” he states. “We can help the owners and architects produce better drawings. When the documents are right, it makes it easier to get competitive subcontractor pricing. I’m not always the least expensive, but that’s OK because [our clients] are getting the value they need. I believe BooCo offers our clients great value. A saying we like to tell our clients is, ‘With BooCo, it won’t cost you extra to finish on time.’”

Booster graduated from Oregon State University with a bachelor of science degree in construction engineering management in 1987. “I’ve always been into retail construction,” he says. “Over four years ago, I heard that a local store fixture manufacturer was going to get out of the installation part of their business. I knew Fred Meyer had several remodel projects coming up, so that opened a door for me to start my own company. We started with store fixture installation and added general contracting at the request of our clients. And now, we’re a full-fledged general contractor.”

When it completed its first fiscal year, BooCo’s revenues exceeded $2.7 million. In December 2006, the company moved from its 3,000-square-foot office to a 19,200-square-foot facility and its year-end revenues were more than $11 million.

Staying Busy
The Northwest’s commercial market remains steady, Booster notes. “We’ve been busy since day one,” he says. “It’s an interesting niche. Every retailer wants to stay ahead of or at least keep up with another retailer.

“For the last four years, we continue to grow because retailers are staying busy. [They] remodel their existing facility [vs.] building brand new.”

Fred Meyer, for example, operates a more than 125 stores and the company likes to remodel its establishments every 10 years. “That’s 10 to 12 stores a year to be remodeled,” Booster notes, which means steady business for BooCo and its competitors.

BooCo plans to continue to grow in its current market, Booster notes. Five to 10 years from now, he anticipates the company’s revenue to be between $20 million and $25 million. Booster, however, wants to focus more on his people. “We want to [grow] but still maintain a life outside of work,” he states.

“Work is important, but I want my employees to have a life and to enjoy the fruits of their labor. We want to grow our sales in the next few years, but family needs to come first. I want them to work smarter and get out of our office at a decent hour.”

BooCo employees have been working hard in the past four years, Booster adds. “That’s great,” he says, “but we need to remember to enjoy the journey, too.”