Orren Pickell Building
Orren Pickell Building Group is a family-owned luxury custom home design-build and remodeling firm, serving affluent homeowners in Chicagoland, the North Shore, Southern Wisconsin, and Harbor Country Michigan through integrated architecture, construction, custom cabinetry, and recurring home maintenance services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1980
- HeadquartersWilmette, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Orren Pickell Building does
Orren Pickell Building Group is a family-owned luxury custom home design-build and remodeling firm headquartered in Wilmette, Illinois, with additional offices in Chicago, Three Oaks (Michigan), and Twin Lakes (Wisconsin). Founded approximately 1980 by Orren Pickell as a college painting business, the firm serves affluent homeowners across Chicagoland, the North Shore, Southern Wisconsin, and Harbor Country Michigan, delivering high-end custom home construction, comprehensive remodeling (whole-house, kitchen, bath, additions, lower levels), and 24/7 home maintenance subscriptions via its proprietary Pickell Proven Process and open-book pricing methodology.
The firm's core technology stack centers on The Orren Pickell Portal™, an award-winning client project management platform providing real-time access to home specifications, renderings, blueprints, construction photos, schedules, and change orders. Supporting technologies include a 3D laser room scanner accurate to a quarter inch and interactive touch-screen design systems used during client consultations. The firm also operates CabinetWerks, a wholly owned custom cabinetry and millwork division that vertically integrates kitchen cabinetry, closets, wine racks, and trim carpentry into the build pipeline.
Revenue is generated through project-based custom home and remodeling contracts under an open-book pricing model, a recurring semi-annual home maintenance subscription stream with 24/7 emergency service, and ancillary revenue from custom cabinetry, millwork, and wallcovering product sales (Maya Romanoff and Schumacher). Distribution is exclusively direct via consultative sales through dedicated Sales Consultants, supported by referrals, an in-house client portal, and a realtor registration program. The firm claims a 95% on-time project completion rate, 350+ industry awards, and nine Crystal Key Awards from the Home Builders Association of Greater Chicago, with second-generation Pickell family members now leading day-to-day operations under founder/CEO Orren Pickell.
Orren Pickell Building firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Orren Pickell Building
- Legal name
- Orren Pickell Building Group
- Website
- https://pickellbuilders.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1980
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Orren Pickell Building Group is a family-owned luxury custom home design-build and remodeling firm, serving affluent homeowners in Chicagoland, the North Shore, Southern Wisconsin, and Harbor Country Michigan through integrated architecture, construction, custom cabinetry, and recurring home maintenance services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Orren Pickell Building industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Luxury Custom Home Building
- NAICS
- New Single-Family Housing Construction (except For-Sale Builders) (236115), Residential Remodelers (236118), Architectural Services (54131)
- SIC
- General Bldg Contractors - Residential Bldgs (1520), Services-To Dwellings & Other Buildings (7340)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Residential General Contracting (New Build) (IMAFAAAB)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Side/Wraparound Extensions (HSAPADAD)
Keywords
Where Orren Pickell Building is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Wilmette
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
Orren Pickell Building business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Custom Home Design and Construction: Full-service design-build for luxury custom homes, from initial architecture through construction completion. Revenue generated through project contracts based on open-book pricing methodology. Projects range from new construction on owned lots to teardown replacements and concept homes.
- Remodeling Services: Whole-house remodels, room additions, kitchen and bathroom renovations, lower level conversions, and exterior makeovers. Includes specialized Rapid Remodel program for faster completion.
- Home Maintenance Contracts: Semi-annual and custom maintenance contracts providing ongoing home care. Services include appliances, cabinets, doors, windows, caulking, fireplaces, garage doors, gutters, roofs, HVAC, floors, painting, plumbing, and smoke detectors. Available 24/7 for emergency service.
- Custom Cabinetry and Millwork: In-house custom cabinetry through CabinetWerks division, including indoor/outdoor cabinetry, closets, and wine racks. Also offers custom millwork and trim carpentry through dedicated carpentry team.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Open Book Pricing - transparent cost structure |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels10 records
Orren Pickell Building product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Orren Pickell Building Group is a luxury custom home design-build firm that delivers full-service architecture, construction, custom cabinetry, and ongoing home maintenance under a single integrated model. The company handles custom home construction on clients' own lots, whole-house remodels, kitchen and bathroom renovations, additions, and lower-level conversions, complemented by the proprietary Orren Pickell Portal client project management system. Services are sold primarily to affluent individual homeowners in the Chicagoland area, Southern Wisconsin, and Harbor Country Michigan.
Product overview
Orren Pickell Building Group is a luxury custom home design/build/remodel firm operating as a single unified service offering rather than a modular software platform. The company's core offering centers on The Orren Pickell Portal™, a proprietary client project management platform that provides homeowners secure access to view specifications, construction photos, schedules, and change orders throughout their project. Primary services include custom home design and construction (handling the full process from architecture through build), comprehensive remodeling (whole house, kitchens, bathrooms, additions, basements, and the Rapid Bath Remodel program), and ongoing home maintenance programs. The company also offers custom millwork products including cabinetry, closets, wine racks, and wallcoverings (Maya Romanoff and Schumacher brands). Supporting services include a dedicated punch list team, owner's representative services, and emergency maintenance available 24/7. The company leverages 3D laser scanning technology to capture existing spaces for remodeling projects.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- The Orren Pickell Portal™: Award-winning online client project management software that allows homeowners to view construction progress, specifications, blueprints, change orders, and communicate with project managers
- Pickell Family Foundation
- CabinetWerks
- Pickell Proven Process
Products and services
- Custom Homes (Design/Build) Full-service custom home design and construction, handling the entire process from initial design through architecture to skilled building execution. Includes build-on-own-lot services and new home construction, with projects ranging from new construction on owned lots to teardown replacements and concept homes. Targeted at affluent individual homeowners in the Chicagoland, Southern Wisconsin, and Harbor Country Michigan markets.
- Remodeling Services Comprehensive residential remodeling services including whole house remodeling, home additions, kitchen remodeling, bathroom remodeling, lower level and basement conversions, and exterior makeovers. Also includes the Fast Bath Remodeling Program (Rapid Bath Remodel) for accelerated bathroom renovation timelines. Targeted at affluent homeowners renovating or expanding existing luxury properties.
- Home Maintenance Program Ongoing residential home maintenance program offering semi-annual maintenance contracts and custom maintenance programs covering appliances, HVAC, plumbing, painting, gutters, roofs, fireplaces, garage doors, caulking, cabinets, doors, windows, floors, and smoke detectors. Available to any luxury homeowner regardless of who originally built the home.
- Emergency Maintenance Services Round-the-clock emergency maintenance available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year for urgent home repair situations on luxury residences.
- Architecture Services In-house architectural design services delivered through the Orren Pickell Design Group subsidiary, covering custom home and remodeling architectural design. Led by Thomas Pins (President and lead architect) since 2019.
- Owner's Representative Services Professional representation services for homeowners overseeing construction or renovation projects on their behalf.
- Custom Cabinetry (Indoor/Outdoor) Custom indoor and outdoor cabinetry including kitchen cabinets, butler's pantries, and built-in storage solutions, crafted by the company's in-house carpentry team and CabinetWerks division.
- Custom Closets Custom closet design and installation services for residential luxury homes, produced by the in-house carpentry team.
- Wallcoverings Wallcovering products including Maya Romanoff Wallcoverings and Schumacher Wallcoverings brands offered to luxury residential clients.
- Wine Racks Custom wine storage solutions and wine racks for residential luxury home installations.
Quantifiable outcome
- 95% on-time project completion rate
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Orren Pickell Building
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Orren Pickell Building technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Orren Pickell Building partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Orren Pickell Building competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- John Hall Homes: North Shore luxury custom home builder competing for the same affluent clients in Winnetka, Wilmette, and surrounding communities with similar bespoke service model.
- Plum Builders: Chicago-area luxury custom home builder serving affluent North Shore and Gold Coast clients with design-build delivery; directly comparable in target customer, price point, and project-based model.
- Normandy Design Build Remodeling: Chicago-area design-build remodeling firm offering integrated architecture, construction, and remodeling services to homeowners — overlapping service mix with Orren Pickell's remodeling division.
- Wiseman-Hughes Design Build: Chicago/North Shore design-build firm focused on custom homes and high-end remodeling, comparable in target market, integrated delivery model, and project complexity.
- Bowers Construction: Regional design-build custom home and remodeling firm serving affluent clients in the Midwest with comparable integrated delivery and craftsmanship positioning.
- Cambridge Homes: Chicagoland luxury home builder with on-staff architects and a design-build approach targeting affluent buyers in similar suburban geographies.
- Glenn Johnson Custom Homes: Long-established North Shore luxury custom home builder with comparable design-build approach and similar affluent homeowner target market in the Chicago suburbs.
Broad incumbents
- Toll Brothers: National luxury homebuilder operating at vastly greater scale; competes for the same affluent buyer pool but delivers semi-custom production homes rather than fully bespoke design-build.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Orren Pickell Building social profiles
Digital presenceOrren Pickell Building financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Orren Pickell Building leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
Orren Pickell Building subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Orren Pickell Building funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Orren Pickell Building M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Orren Pickell Building
What does Orren Pickell Building do?
Orren Pickell Building Group is a luxury custom home design-build firm that delivers full-service architecture, construction, custom cabinetry, and ongoing home maintenance under a single integrated model. The company handles custom home construction on clients' own lots, whole-house remodels, kitchen and bathroom renovations, additions, and lower-level conversions, complemented by the proprietary Orren Pickell Portal client project management system. Services are sold primarily to affluent individual homeowners in the Chicagoland area, Southern Wisconsin, and Harbor Country Michigan.
Is Orren Pickell Building a public or private company?
Orren Pickell Building is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Orren Pickell Building founded?
Orren Pickell Building was founded in 1980. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Orren Pickell Building based?
Orren Pickell Building is headquartered in Wilmette, United States, in the North America region.
How does Orren Pickell Building make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Custom Home Design and Construction is the primary driver. The others are remodeling Services, home Maintenance Contracts and custom Cabinetry and Millwork.
Who are Orren Pickell Building's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are John Hall Homes, Plum Builders, Normandy Design Build Remodeling, Wiseman-Hughes Design Build, Bowers Construction, Cambridge Homes and Glenn Johnson Custom Homes. Toll Brothers is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Orren Pickell Building have an API?
No public API is recorded for Orren Pickell Building.
What industry is Orren Pickell Building in?
Orren Pickell Building's product category is Luxury Custom Home Building. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAFAAAB, Residential General Contracting (New Build), with a secondary code of HSAPADAD, Side/Wraparound Extensions. Its NAICS code is 236115 and its SIC code is 1520.