Real Estate: WILLIAM ‘BILL’ PAULETTE
FOUNDER, CHAIRMAN AND CEO, KBS INC., RICHMOND
Published
With $1,000 in seed money, Paulette founded KBS as a one-person construction company in 1975. Over four decades, it’s become one of the top-rated construction firms in the mid-Atlantic, delivering high-profile, multimillion-dollar projects such as remaking the old Putney Shoe Factory into the CarMax Midtown Innovation Center in Richmond, and The Current, a full-block, mixed-use development in Richmond’s Manchester neighborhood. He has been integrally involved with the company’s growth throughout its history.
Paulette attributes the company’s success to its belief that long-term partnerships begin with the relationships developed on each project. By ensuring projects are managed with the customer’s needs in mind, repeat business is the norm, not the exception, and 85% of their current work is repeat business.
Known as “Bunny” to his fellow cadets at Virginia Military Institute, Paulette served on VMI’s board of visitors and was president of the VMI Keydet Club. Additionally, KBS constructed VMI’s Paulette Hall, which houses locker room facilities. An avid VMI sports fan and golfer, Paulette also has visited all 50 states.
