Longevity, Legacy & Looking Ahead: PBS Contractors is marking a major milestone and making a big transition for its future

As PBS Contractors celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2026, it’s also undergoing a significant leadership transition. The Naples-based builder finds itself in the dual position of reflecting on the firm’s long history while also looking ahead to the future.

“I’m pleased that we’ve got longevity,” says founding partner Russell Budd. “I think construction companies only trail restaurants in the frequency and speed with which they go broke. It’s a tough business, and not everybody makes it.

“So it’s evidence of our competence,” he continues. “But 40 years also says that I’ve been doing it a long time, and it’s time to pass it on.”

When Budd began formulating a retirement plan, he weighed options like selling the company or shutting it down. But neither appealed, and he chose to find a younger successor to take over the firm.

Around that same time, Tim Dupre was weighing a career change after 24 years at Conditioned Air, a stint that culminated in him serving as president and CEO. Dupre and Budd moved in overlapping business worlds in Southwest Florida, so they already knew each other as the conversation turned to Dupre taking on the role of president and CEO at PBS Contractors.

The two learned that they shared similar values both related to business and beyond, and Dupre appreciated that Budd wasn’t just focused on the bottom line when it came to the future of the company. “It was about truly creating a legacy, and a legacy that could be passed on to future generations,” says Dupre. “And it was the commitment to that vision that really attracted me to the opportunity.”

Dupre became president and CEO of PBS Contractors in December 2021, and Budd began the transition process that will wrap up with his official retirement in 2030. Budd sees his role now as a mentor, coach and sounding board to Dupre. “We can talk about anything openly,” says Budd. “It’s really a good rapport.”

With four decades at the head of the company, Budd’s got a lot of knowledge to share. “Almost every conversation I have with Tim, I try to bring something to his attention that he might not be aware of,” he says. “That’s just the basis of our relationship.”

But Dupre has taken the reins with skill. “Not once have I been in a position with Tim where he was doing something I didn’t think was right or appropriate,” says Budd. “We have had differences on how to get to the goal, but we’ve always found ourselves wanting to get to the same place relative to our clients, to the project and to the community.”

The lengthy transition period Budd put into place also gives longtime clients the chance to gradually get used to the change in leadership. “Like anything Russell does, he does it with class and he does it with purposeful intent,” says Michael Wynn, president of Sunshine Ace Hardware, who has worked with PBS Contractors on several remodels and new builds. “He has set out a long runway to allow for a gradual passing of the baton, which has made it very easy as an existing client to get to know the new leadership and form that same level of trust in Tim as I’ve had in Russell.”

BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS AND TRUST

Dupre considers himself a steward of Budd’s legacy with the mission of building upon the foundation Budd laid. “It’s about making sure that we continue to strengthen the company for its next chapter,” says Dupre.

PBS Contractors operates under a set of strong fundamentals that aren’t going anywhere, like its purpose statement of “We build better lives for our team, for our clients and for our community.” Budd says that philosophy is one of the things that truly sets the company apart. “We make a big deal out of building relationships with our clients and having our company be a great place to work,” he says.

It’s a common adage that the customer is always right, but at PBS, the team comes first. Employees not only receive good pay and benefits, but they also have flexibility on the job. Leadership surveys staff frequently and anonymously to learn of any issues that need fixing.

“Because we do value our clients, we put our team first,” says Budd. “And that’s not just something we paint on the wall… It continues to be a point of reference in why we do what we do and how we do it.”

When the team is taken care of and appreciated, good things follow. “Russell and I both firmly believe that when you focus on putting your people first, they’re going to take better care of your clients,” says Dupre. “When we take better care of our clients, we build beautiful buildings for our clients, whether it’s their home or their place of business. And that’s what impacts the community that we live in.”

PBS Contractors works with residential and commercial clients in southern Lee County and throughout Collier County. And there are no grand plans for expansion or dramatically widening its reach.

“We’re not trying to be everything to everyone,” says Dupre. “We’re trying to stay defined within our niche, and we want to make sure that we serve those clients really, really well… We’re not trying to become the biggest; we prefer quality over quantity.”

With around 70% of its business coming from repeat customers and referrals, the company is definitely doing something right. Sunshine Ace Hardware, for example, has turned to PBS for three ground-up builds and several remodeling projects.

“I don’t think it’s any secret that finding a construction company that has consistent quality and execution is a rarity,” says Wynn. “PBS has been on time and on budget with every single one of our projects, from the smaller, severalhundred- thousand-dollar remodels to the multimillion-dollar builds.”

Both companies share similar values and prioritize their clients in the same way, which helped build trust between them, as did PBS’s focus on communication and transparency. “So many things can be solved through strong and early communication, and that’s one of the things I think they do very well,” says Wynn.

LISTEN AND LEARN

Naples has always been home for Budd. He graduated from Naples High, and his children and grandchildren were all born in Naples. It’s important to him that the community embraces his company, and vice versa.

Long-term partnerships, like the one with Sunshine Ace, are a big reason why PBS Contractors has enjoyed four decades of success. “I’m confident there’s a lot of people that want Michael’s business, and he keeps coming back to us,” says Budd. “And we work to continually earn that.”

PBS Contractors is the only builder in Southwest Florida to hold the prestigious Concierge Builder® trademark. “As a Concierge Builder, it’s our job to anticipate the needs of our clients,” says Dupre. “I think today’s clients want more than just someone that has construction expertise… Being a Concierge Builder is making sure that we’re really listening to what the client’s vision is.”

That could mean turning a sketch on a napkin into someone’s dream home, or ensuring an architect’s plan matches how a client truly wants a space to function. “Our job is to guide our clients through the process,” says Dupre. “Construction projects are significant investments. When you go through that amount of time and money, you want it to be as close to perfection as possible.”

Sometimes really listening to the client means realizing that PBS isn’t the right builder for a job. “We never strive to be the cheapest builder in town,” says Dupre. “We pride ourselves on focusing on quality and communication. In some cases, the commitment to that has identified early on that we’re not the right fit for a client.

“Every project we touch has our name on it,” he continues. “If we don’t feel like we’re the right fit, we believe it’s our responsibility to be transparent, respect the client’s investment of time and money, and help them explore alternatives that may better suit their needs.”

To ensure quality building experiences, PBS has developed relationships with trade partners that are just as strong as the ones it has with repeat clients. “We’re an extension of the work our trade partners do,” says Dupre. “They really are our business partners. We couldn’t achieve what we achieve for our clients without them.”

The company surveys all its clients to learn about how each project went, and the results are sent to everyone in the company, whether it’s praise or problems. “If there’s something critical or something we didn’t do or didn’t follow through on, it’s immediately everybody’s knowledge so we can address it,” says Budd. “I want our clients to know that if there’s ever anything wrong, everybody on the team wants to know about it. I want them to know about it so that we can try to never do that again.”

The survey information is also available to potential clients. “I would really like our clients to talk to previous clients and get firsthand experience,” says Budd.

As Budd steps back more and more from day-to-day operations at the company, he has complete confidence in his successor. “Tim’s very capable,” says Budd. “He’s intelligent. He understands business. He understands construction.”

But Budd’s willing to come off the bench when needed. “When the clients see me still lingering around, they see that we’re going to maintain our commitment to excellence,” he says. “We’re in a transition of leadership, but I think that we’re still consistent in our promise to our team, our clients and our community in what we’re trying to do and how we go about doing it. So I’m happy for the team, and I like where it’s going.”