For nearly eight decades, R. Carlson & Sons Inc. has been a name associated with hard work, loyalty, and trusted construction services in the greater Chicago region. Founded in 1947, the company has transformed from a moving and hauling operation into a versatile general contracting firm, serving Chicago, its suburbs, and Northwest Indiana. Through that evolution, one thing has remained constant: the family-centered culture that has defined the business across five generations.
Today, under the leadership of Bill Sieczkowski Jr. and Brenda Smith, the company continues to strengthen its reputation for best-in-class performance and reliability. At its core, R. Carlson & Sons remains a trusted general contractor and excavation subcontractor, serving restaurants, gas stations, car washes, banks, office spaces, and industrial developments. Yet the company is also much more: it is a committed local employer, a training ground for the next generation of superintendents, and a team that treats safety and quality as fundamental to every project. With the next generation—Bill Sieczkowski III and Tommy Sieczkowski—already involved and looking ahead, the foundation is set for many more decades of growth and success.
“Our bread and butter project type is repeat retail,” says Bill Sieczkowski III. “We build new locations and do any size remodel, from painting one wall as a cosmetic touch-up to a full gut of a retail or commercial space.” The variety of work underscores the team’s adaptability, and while repeat retail clients form the base of the business, R. Carlson & Sons has built strong capabilities across multiple markets.
The company’s roots trace back to founder Robert Carlson, who launched the business in 1947 alongside his sons. What began as a moving company—hauling coal, pianos, and furniture, quickly evolved into concrete and excavation work. By the 1950s, R. Carlson & Sons was firmly established as a general contractor, particularly in the growing market of fuel stations. Women also played a crucial role in those early years, even if not officially recognized in the company’s name. “He started the company in 1947 with his sons, hence why the name is R. Carlson & Sons,” Bill explains. “He had two daughters, my grandma being one, Barb Sieczkowski, formerly Barbara Carlson. She worked for the company as much as the sons did, but we always joke that in the 40s, since women did not get as much recognition as men did, the name R. Carlson & Sons and Daughter wasn’t going to stick.”
The company’s lineage has since stretched through five generations, with each leaving its mark. “Robert Carlson even hired his own father at one point in the business,” Bill recalls. “We take a lot of pride in the history of our company because it has been passed down through our family and its legacy for five generations. The aim behind the company has always been to provide quality service at a great value for all of our clients.”
That pride in heritage translates into a strong local ethos. With between 25 and 30 full-time employees, all hired locally, R. Carlson & Sons is committed to ensuring staff can work hard without sacrificing family life. “Everybody’s local, and our work region is local,” Bill says. “So whether we’re working days or nights, our employees get to go home each and every day, and that’s really important to us. We’re all workhorses; we get things done and work long hours. But at the end of the day, family is the most important thing to us, despite our love for being out on the job sites.”
The company’s ability to perform excavation services in-house further sets it apart from competitors. With its own equipment, operators, laborers, truck drivers, and mechanics, R. Carlson & Sons can manage site work for its own projects as well as serve as a subcontractor for other general contractors. “Having all these capabilities allows us to handle our own site work and support other contractors when needed,” Bill says. This flexibility has strengthened the firm’s reputation as both a capable prime contractor and a trusted partner.
Recent projects underscore the company’s versatility and command of complex builds. In Tinley Park, R. Carlson & Sons delivered a ground-up Gas N Wash that goes far beyond a standard fuel station—adding a full convenience store with two food outlets, a dual-lane drive-through, and a 150-foot, state-of-the-art tunnel car wash. “It was a complex site,” Bill says. “We imported hundreds of loads of dirt to raise the grade, navigated major elevation changes, and constructed extensive retaining walls. Building a car wash of this scale isn’t new for us, but this one stands out—prominently located on a major intersection and executed with exceptional detail.”
“We imported hundreds of loads of dirt to raise the grade, navigated major elevation changes, and constructed extensive retaining walls. Building a car wash of this scale isn’t new for us, but this one stands out.”
The company also recently completed a first-of-its-kind major remodel for McDonald’s at 2609 S. Kedzie in Chicago, IL. The project featured state-of-the-art kitchen upgrades—including conveyors, food scales, and smart controls—along with solar panels for power generation and McDonald’s latest interior and exterior design concepts. The result positions the client for its next chapter while offering customers an enhanced menu and a more enjoyable fast-dining experience.
In another standout project, R. Carlson & Sons delivered a stick-built Starbucks at 801 E. Algonquin—executed with a rare zero-punch list. “Our team achieved that on a project of this scale, which both we and the Starbucks team were extremely proud of,” Bill says. Completed on time, on budget, and with no deficiencies, the build showcased the firm’s precision craftsmanship and ability to meet Starbucks’ rigorous brand standards.
For Bill, milestones are not just about revenue or marquee clients, but about employees. “There’s just been tremendous business growth; we’ve seen it really just pop over the last 10 to 15 years,” he explains. “But I’d say some of the biggest milestones, truthfully, are helping our employees get to that next step in their careers. We often hire younger, less experienced employees, especially our superintendent/construction manager role. That’s part of our culture, and we train them up internally. We have a lot of training and development opportunities that we focus on—we really want to give our superintendents opportunities to learn and grow.”
He emphasizes that this investment in people is central to both company culture and client success. “One of the biggest milestones that we’ve achieved is our people taking care of our people, helping them get to that next step in their career, helping them put food on the table for their families, and ultimately as a result providing high-quality construction for our clients.”
This emphasis on culture and training sets R. Carlson & Sons apart in a competitive marketplace. “We try to find good people who care, and at the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about,” Bill says. “If we can hire, empower, and build up the right staff internally, we’re able to continue to execute at a high level for our clients, and that sets us apart from our competitors. I’m really proud of the team we built.”
Safety is another cornerstone. Bill describes it as the company’s “number one focus,” with a world-class program that includes interactive onboarding led personally by company President, Bill Sieczkowski Jr. The Safety Program includes weekly jobsite safety audits, toolbox talks, and the use of solar-powered cameras on larger job sites. “We really have a high emphasis on safety; it’s at our core. That’s our number one focus, and that shines through on our job sites,” Bill says. By investing in technology, including apps to track incidents and exploring AI solutions, the company is staying on the cutting edge while keeping its blue-collar ethos intact.
Looking ahead, Bill sees strong momentum. “Business is booming, we’ve got record backlog and we see a lot of work coming up. We have many current strong partnerships with loyal clients.” The company continues to benefit from repeat retail work with national brands while also maintaining its willingness to take on one-off projects for smaller local clients. “We find success in that repeat retail sector because a lot of clients that are big names in the US or worldwide have many facilities, and they have programs or rollouts they want to accomplish and achieve among many stores in their portfolio,” Bill says. “We have the staff bandwidth and experience to stack and knock those types of programs out. At the same time, we’re capable of doing one-off jobs for clients as well if they just have a single location.”
From its founding in 1947 with a few trucks and a vision, to today’s full-service contracting firm with high-profile projects and trusted partnerships, R. Carlson & Sons Inc. has grown by staying true to its roots. It remains a family-run company, dedicated to safety, quality, and people—both employees and clients. For nearly eighty years, that combination has proven resilient, and as the company looks to the future, it is a formula that promises continued success.
