At the beginning of 2009, I don’t think anyone, including a national commercial general contractor like Englewood Construction, was prepared for the twists and turns that would face the commercial construction industry. As this year draws to a close, let’s look back on some of the highs and lows of what was a challenging year. […]
With the shuttering of stores like Circuit City and Linens N’ Things, big box retailers looking to gain market share certainly have their choice of vacant store locations in prime markets and shopping centers. And depending on the condition of their new stores, the savings on retail construction costs to retrofit the space could be […]
As many of you may know, Englewood Construction recently completed Zara’s largest store in the United States at 700 N. Michigan Ave. in Chicago. For those familiar with Chicago, you may also know this store offers a prime corner location on the city’s famed Magnificent Mile. But what I want to do is tell you […]
I’ve got to ask, are you still competitively bidding the bulk of your commercial construction projects? Really, you are? Interesting….
Sure, I know there will always be developers who competitively bid all their projects, but from a construction cost and timeline perspective, it pays to negotiate with a designated general contractor versus requesting multiple bids on a construction project. And here’s why:
For a number of reasons – usually cost, location or a lease agreement – commercial real estate owners are opting to refresh or remodel their retail stores, restaurants and hotels instead of building new-construction projects.
In fact, just recently Disney announced plans to completely transform its 340 stores in the United States and Europe from Disney Stores to Imagination Park, http://bit.ly/14YNxn.
Regardless for your reason to remodel, you need to realize that a renovation is a completely different animal than building new construction.
For example, during a new restaurant construction project, owners are responsible for providing the majority of the supplies and drawings while the general contractor executes the work.