History

George Kraft arrived in Naples, Florida in the early 1960’s. In 1968, he opened George F. Kraft Co., a local construction company and quickly gained a reputation as a builder with providing high quality craftsmanship and philosophy of doing things right the first time. For him excellence was an expectation. These values became the foundation for Kraft, establishing a basis for it to grow into one of Florida’s largest and most well respected construction services firms.

In the early days Kraft built single-family homes and then diversified into the commercial market building condos, retail, schools and government buildings. Kraft was a young and nimble company and applied a unique brand of service including unsurpassed quality and commitment to serving the client to a diverse project portfolio. This same approach is an attribute that is the root of the company’s success today.

Protégé and friend, Robert “Bob” L. Carsello took the reins and purchased the company after George Kraft died in 1974. Bob had been with Kraft from the company’s infancy and continued George’s legacy on his behalf. The company name was modified to Kraft Construction, but the passion for quality stayed the same.

Under Bob’s leadership, Kraft’s business continued to thrive. The company grew to such an extent by 1979 he needed some help and brought on a new partner, Fred Pezeshkan. Their skills were a perfect blend of operational excellence, industry leadership, and community involvement. Together they created a long-term vision for Kraft to expand and serve clients throughout Florida.

Over the next two decades Kraft became the “go to” contractor for Southwest Florida. The Kraft building teams paid tribute to George Kraft’s legacy by solidifying the company’s reputation for delivering not only quality projects, but also timely projects. To better serve Kraft’s growing client base, the company expanded to Sarasota in 1999, to Ft. Myers in 2003 and to Charlotte County in 2005. By this time, Kraft was now ranked as the largest privately held Construction Management firm in the state with $650 million in annual revenue.

As Kraft grew so did the size and complexity of projects. With expansive projects like the construction of the Edison College Campus and the Ave Maria University 750-acre campus, both in Collier County, Kraft is recognized for its expertise in higher education construction. Kraft has also earned the position of industry leader in green building in Sarasota constructing the city’s first LEED Certified project, first LEED Certified school and first LEED Certified grocery store.

After half a century in the construction industry, 36 of which were dedicated to Kraft, Bob Carsello hung up his hard hat in 2006. And just as he had done for George Kraft 26 years earlier, Fred Pezeshkan did for him. Today, Fred continues the Kraft tradition of delivering quality projects to clients and going the extra mile to make certain the job is done right the first time.

The company’s extensive repeat client list, some of which go back to the company’s start, is the greatest testament to Kraft’s commitment to client care. A few of those special clients include NCH Healthcare, Collier County School District, and the Collier County Government. The ability to maintain strong client relationships over a four decade period demonstrates Kraft’s longevity and consistent delivery of quality construction.

In 2008, Manhattan Construction Group acquired controlling interest in Kraft. Kraft was a perfect fit geographically and philosophically. With the new ownership, Kraft gained an even stronger financial position and Manhattan Construction Group expanded its presence in Florida. Following the acquisition, Kraft expanded through the adoption of Manhattan Construction’s Tampa office.

Today, Fred Pezeshkan continues in leading Kraft with an emphasis on excellence in client care just as he has for over 30 years. The company continues to prove its ability as an industry leader and has grown operations and service offerings to include  solar construction as Kraft Solar.  Partnering with Regenesis Power, Kraft Solar is building a 19-acre solar farm, the largest Solar project in Florida, at Florida Gulf Coast University.

Over the years the company has also earned a reputation for building excellence in healthcare, government, education, laboratory, transportation, hospitality & gaming, K-12, higher education, museums and large government projects such as court houses and prisons. Kraft is unique in that, in addition to large commercial construction projects, the company has the capability to manage small projects ranging from tenant improvements, renovations, single-family custom homes and more.

Further, the company has expanded it services now offering construction in road and bridge construction as Kraft Civil.

As opportunities arise Kraft shares resources and personnel with affiliates, Manhattan Construction Company and Manhattan Road & Bridge, with the continuing focus to provide clients with the highest expertise.