A.J. Padelford & Son

What A.J. Padelford & Son does

A.J. Padelford & Son, Inc. is a fourth-generation, family-owned commercial general contractor founded in 1934 in Cerritos, California, and licensed to operate in California, Nevada, and Arizona. The company provides ground-up construction, design/build, retrofit, remodel, and tenant improvement services across six verticalized sectors: self-storage facilities, grocery/markets, large retail, industrial (warehouses and distribution), retail centers, and automotive dealerships. Its project portfolio spans multi-story self-storage buildings (with and without subterranean levels), ground-up shopping centers with rooftop parking, beverage and furniture distribution warehouses, and full dealership builds and remodels.

The firm's revenue model is project-based general contracting, with work acquired through direct enterprise relationships, competitive bidding, and design/build contracts. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is quoted per project. Customer logos include national REITs (Extra Space), major retail chains (Home Depot historically, Michaels, Old Navy), grocery operators (Safeway/Pavilions, Vons, Gelsons, Northgate Market, Super King, Vintage Grocers), industrial clients (Bob's Furniture, Classic Beverage, Ace Beverage), and automotive dealerships (Jaguar, Silver Star Chevrolet). The company employs 11-50 people and operates with no external capital, remaining wholly owned by the Padelford and Emmons families across four generations.

Current strategic emphasis is concentrated on the self-storage vertical, where multiple concurrent ground-up and retrofit projects (Bronson Storage Los Angeles, Extra Space Lake Forest, Canoga Park Self Storage at 184,000sf, Secure Space San Pedro at 130,000sf, Avalon Los Angeles at 114,000sf) indicate active capture of a sector the company explicitly identifies as a growth market. The firm is led by President Dan Padelford with three VPs and a LEED AP BD+C credentialed Sustainability Advisor, positioning it for institutional ESG-aligned procurement without evidence of technology platform or AI/ML capabilities beyond standard construction practice.

Name

A.J. Padelford & Son

Legal name

A.J. PADELFORD & SON, INC.

Website

https://padelford.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1934

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

A.J. Padelford & Son is a fourth-generation, family-owned commercial general contractor founded in 1934 in Cerritos, California, providing design/build, ground-up, and remodel construction services across self-storage, grocery, large retail, industrial, retail center, and auto dealership verticals in California, Nevada, and Arizona.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Construction Services

NAICS

Nonresidential Building Construction (2362)

SIC

General Bldg Contractors - Nonresidential Bldgs (1540)

akta.pro primary industry

Modular/Offsite General Contracting & Installation (IMAFAAAK)

Keywords

• Commercial general contracting
• Design-build construction
• Self-storage facility construction
• Retail store construction
• Automotive dealership construction

Headquarters

HQ city

Cerritos

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

A.J. Padelford & Son is a family-owned general contractor providing commercial construction services for self-storage facilities, grocery/markets, large retail stores, industrial warehouses and distribution centers, retail shopping centers, and automotive dealerships. Projects range from ground-up new construction to retrofits, façade remodels, tenant improvements, and fixture change-outs. The firm operates across California, Nevada, and Arizona, primarily serving enterprise clients.

Product overview

A.J. Padelford & Son is a general commercial construction company offering specialized services across six core market sectors: Storage Facility Construction, Large Retail Construction, Industrial Construction, Retail Center Construction, Markets Construction (supermarkets), and Dealership Construction. Founded in 1934, the company operates primarily in Southern California and is licensed in California, Nevada, and Arizona. Their projects range from ground-up new construction to retrofits and remodels of existing structures.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Storage Facility Construction General contracting services for self-storage facilities including multi-story buildings with and without sub-terranean levels, façade remodels, and locker replacements for enterprise self-storage operators and developers.
• Large Retail Construction Construction services for large retail store construction and remodels, including extensive historical work for Home Depot and other major retailers operating across California.
• Industrial Construction Construction services for industrial facilities including beverage warehouses, beverage distributors, and furniture distribution centers for industrial operators across Southern California.
• Retail Center Construction Construction services for retail shopping centers including ground-up retail centers, façade remodels, and single-shop tenant improvement (TI) projects for commercial real estate developers and retail tenants.
• Markets Construction Construction services for supermarkets and grocery stores including ground-up builds, remodels, and fixture change-outs for grocery chains such as Pavilions/Safeway, Vons, Gelsons Market, Northgate Market, Super King Market, and Vintage Grocers across California.
• Dealership Construction Construction and remodeling services for automotive dealerships including new builds, showroom remodels, and service-facility upgrades, with historical work including the majority of the Cerritos Auto Square dealerships and ongoing work for brands such as Jaguar and Silver Star Chevrolet.

Named customers19 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Swinerton: Large, established West Coast general contractor with substantial self-storage, retail, and commercial portfolios. Broader scale than Padelford but operates in many of the same verticals and geographies.
• DPR Construction: National commercial GC with significant self-storage and retail tenant work among its portfolio. Operates at materially larger scale but competes for similar institutional clients.
• McCarthy Building Companies: National commercial general contractor with self-storage and large-format retail experience. Competes with Padelford for some institutional clients at a much larger scale.

Direct peers

• Snyder Langston: Southern California commercial general contractor delivering ground-up and renovation projects across retail, office, industrial, and self-storage. Comparable size, geography, and end-market focus to Padelford.
• W.E. O'Neil Construction: Mid-size commercial GC with strong self-storage, retail, and industrial portfolio and multi-state West Coast presence. Comparable to Padelford in service offering and self-storage specialization, though with broader geographic reach.
• R.D. Olson Construction: California-based commercial general contractor with similar mid-sized footprint focused on hospitality, retail, self-storage, and multi-family. Directly comparable in scale, regional concentration, and project mix to A.J. Padelford & Son.
• Pacific Builders: West Coast commercial GC with self-storage, retail, and industrial experience. Comparable project types and client mix to A.J. Padelford & Son.

Regional players

• Mill Construction Co. Southern California commercial GC focused on retail, self-storage, and industrial builds. Closely comparable in size and project type to Padelford, though with a slightly different geographic concentration.
• Reno Contracting: San Diego-based commercial GC with self-storage and retail construction portfolio. Comparable scale and end-market focus to Padelford, with regional (Southern California) overlap.

Emerging players

• Tint Builders: Self-storage-focused specialty contractor building ground-up multi-story storage facilities in the Western US. Closely aligned with Padelford's self-storage specialization but smaller and more narrowly focused.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/a-j-padelford-self-storage-sector
• Facebookfacebook.com/ajpadelford

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about A.J. Padelford & Son