About R.B. Schwarz, Inc.
The Contractor
Robert Schwarz, CR started his own general contracting company, R.B. Schwarz, Inc., in 1987. He and his brothers learned how to do basic home repairs at their father's knee, helping maintain an older home in Cleveland Heights. Robert also painted houses during high school and college to earn extra money.
Robert graduated from Cleveland State University in 1985 with a bachelor's degree in marketing. He worked for two years in sales but yearned to start his own business. "I wanted to do it for myself," he recalls.
He put the word out that he did home repairs. He started getting jobs correcting housing code violations and along the way developed a good rapport with building inspectors. He still remembers his first project and the woman who inspected it, even though it was almost 20 years ago.
In the spring of 2006, Robert earned his Certified Remodeler Title from the National Association of Remodeling Industry (NARI). This involved completing a 12 week extensive comprehensive course, followed by an 8 hour exam. The passing of this exam indicated that knowledge and skills have been tested in more than 20 remodeling task areas including: Business Codes, Construction Law, Planning, Building Site Layout and Remodeling Trade Skills.
Robert brings to every job a meticulous attention to detail that borders on perfectionism. He and his hard-working team of conscientious subcontractors all reflect the same attention to detail, honesty and professionalism. "We know how to do it — and we do it right," Robert says.
"We would work with Robert and his subcontractors again in a heartbeat," says the homeowner of the kitchen that won the 2005 PRO Remodeler of the Year Award. One thing that impressed the homeowner is Robert's problem-solving abilities. "Problems don't rattle him," she says.
"We typically encounter unforeseen problems with these older homes," says Robert. "It's how we deal with them that's key."
The R.B. Schwarz Team
Here are the other members of the core team that works on each R.B. Schwarz job. Other subcontractors are brought in when a job warrants additional help.
Mark Schwarz, Robert's older brother, is his number one man — job foreman, troubleshooter and quintessential craftsman. Mark joined Robert soon after he started R.B. Schwarz, Inc. With nearly 20 years experience in the business, Mark's approach to every job is, "We always do our best to satisfy every client."
Cheryl Case, well known for her award-winning kitchen and bathroom designs, has worked with R.B. Schwarz since the late 1980s. She designed both renovations for which R.B. Schwarz won the 2005, 2006, and 2007 PRO Remodeler of the Year Awards.
Rick Reid of Reid Carpentry, R.B. Schwarz's finish carpenter, has worked with R.B. Schwarz for 19 years. "Rick is highly respected and one of the finest trim carpenters in the business," Robert says.
Bill Gelfus is a licensed plumber who owns Carl Di Franco & Sons. "Bill does great plumbing," says Robert. "He's my mentor — I've learned a lot from him over the years."
Dave Neuman, the team's lead electrician and owner of Dave's Electrical Service, has worked with R.B. Schwarz for 5 years. "Dave prides himself on his professionalism and knowledge of the electrical code," says Mark Schwarz.