HOME & DESIGN STACKING BLOCKS

Paul Kowalski reflects on 15 years of home remodeling.

words ELEANOR MERRELL portrait photos PICMAN MEDIA LLC project photos CHARLOTTE HOME PHOTOGRAPHY

Paul Kowalski graduated from University of South Carolina with a Double Major in Marketing & Management and dual interests in business and the building process. He quickly found a job working for a large regional builder, where he discovered how fruitful client relationships and successful construction projects could spark joy and satisfaction in his professional life.

After five years with the regional builder, Kowalski founded his own business, Paul Kowalski Builders, ultimately marrying his business and building interests. “I felt my aptitude for process and structure would be an asset to the remodeling industry and create a refreshing experience for my clients,” says Kowalski.

For the last 15 years, Paul Kowalski Builders has been providing architectural design and concierge construction services, so clients can design and build their dream homes with complete customization and minimal hassle.

The firm’s signature project has become design-to-build remodels, including additions, whole home remodels, and reconfigured spaces. “Frequently, our homeowners know what they need from their home but aren’t sure how to achieve the goal or what it should look like,” explains Kowalski. “For example, their family has grown or changed and they know they need an additional bedroom/bathroom and more flex space, but don’t know where or how to make it happen.”

That’s why every project begins with a detailed discussion between PKB and the client to iron out the client’s needs, intentions, goals, and aesthetic. This information becomes the foundation for the architectural design team, who thoroughly assess the space in question before drafting custom plans. After an initial design is reviewed and approved by the client, the PKB team refines the plan, ensuring that it is realistic and buildable, and also within the client’s budget and timeframe. With a construction-ready, permit-friendly plan in place, the PKB team sources contractors and initiates the building process, at which point clients can be as little or as heavily involved as they wish.

PKB’s process has been applied to a large portfolio of homes, but Kowalski’s personal favorite was a whole home remodel on Lake Wylie. The home, owned by the foreman who helped build