How It All Began...

Have you ever wandered what would happen if your house caught on fire one day? Or what if your house was engulfed by a swirling tornado? Could you imagine what you would do if you had 6 feet of water in your basement? Many people acknowledge natural disasters and have insurance policies to cover the disaster if one should ever strike but not many people actually know what happens after the damage has been done. It’s hard to imagine everything you have ever had; all the toys, electronics, furniture, appliances, and memories all being engulfed by flames as you watch the fireman work tirelessly to save what is left of your house before it gets worse. Well that’s the business my family has been in for the past 20 years.

It all started back in Chicago of 1991. My parents were married for just over a year and had a young baby boy who wasn’t even 18months old, me! They were renting a small little house in Skokie, Illinois practically no money and a family to provide for. My dad was looking through the newspaper for job and came across a company that restored homes after fires, floods, wind damage, and mold damage. He was hired! After working for the company for only a few short months and bringing in over a million dollars of business he asked for a raise. When his boss declined him for a raise an insurance agent from Allstate approached him and advised him to start his own company. He told my dad, “Jonathan, I like the way you work. If you start your own business I will provide you with your first 10 losses* for your new company and help get you on your feet.”  (A loss in the restoration business is known as any job type that requires restoring.) My dad talked to my mom about it and they jumped at the opportunity!

After taking out a new business loan from the bank, buying one truck to transport contents, renting a small warehouse space, and hiring 5 family members, which were all family, my parents had officially begun to start what is now the largest privately owned Restoration company in the Midwest: 

Laurens Restoration Inc.

Laurens Restoration Inc. has now been in busy for over 20 years. Providing professional and quality restoration work throughout Illinois and reaching into parts of Indiana and Wisconsin. We now employ roughly 100 employees with over 50 company vehicles. With our state of the art 80,000 square foot facility based out of Glenview, Illinois 

there isn’t a job we can’t handle.

What Does A Restoration Company Do?

People often wonder many questions when they hear about Laurens Restoration. What kind of work does a disaster restoration company actually perform? How do they receive their business? After a loss how long does it take until a homeowner can move back into their house? The list is never ending but the answers are much more simple once they are broken down, and people can start to understand what it is that Laurens Restoration actually does.

The opportunities disaster restoration companies have are virtually endless. To sum it up it would be a company that restores any home, apartment, convention center, restaurant, airport, school, or even hospital that has received any form of damage to the physical structure of the building or the contents* that are inside of it. (Contents are all personal belongings one may have in their home, office, or building it includes everything from your dogs chew toy all the way to the clothes in your closet.)

Restoration companies work hand in hand with insurance companies when providing the necessary work in restoring a property after a loss. For example: let’s say the University of Arizona’s Rec Center experienced a small electrical fire that spread smoke and soot throughout the entire building. The Rec Center would then notify their insurance company of the fire and from there the insurance firm would be provided with all the information of what happened to the restoration company.

So what happens next? In most cases the Restoration company would come to the Rec Center and provide a rough estimate of the work that needs to be accomplished in order to have the Rec Center back up and running. The restoration company will send out an estimator to provide a rough estimate through a system called “x-actimate” which is the most used and trusted replacement cost estimating software for the insurance repair industry. Once the estimate is approved by the insurance firm the restoration company sends out their crew to perform the work that needs to be done. When work isn’t done properly there can be long term issues that can put everyone at risk.

In a case like this, Laurens Restoration would send out a crew to inventory all contents in the building that we will be moving to warehouse to clean, de-oderize, and restore. The larger contents will be individually wrapped with a moving pad and saran wrap and the smaller contents would be neatly boxed and inventoried as well. Once the building is completely empty of all its contents and brought back to the Laurens Restoration warehouse we would then store them in a crate until the building is repaired of all damages. Just before the building is ready we remove all the items from their respected crates unwrap all contents and give each item a thorough hands on cleaning to remove all dust and soot left over from the fire. When the contents are cleaned they are then sent to the O-zone room to be de-odorized. After 24-48 hours of de-odorizing the contents they are then re-wrapped and/or boxed one final time and re-packed into the truck to be delivered the newly re-stored Rec Center.

Through organization and preparation each item is placed back exactly how it was stated on our inventory sheets and labels. The customer is satisfied and it is another job well done!

Bigger Is Always Better...Isn't It?

When being a part of a company that is so diverse it makes endless opportunities of expanding. As I have previously mentioned there isn't a job Laurens Restoration cannot handle; and I meant it. In 2001, my dad, as well as high superiors within the company all sat down to go over some of the numbers from the past years so they could get a grasp on where the company should be at for the upcoming year. While doing so they realized a major flaw in our business. We were missing out on the opportunity to improve our profit margins. And that's when a whole new opportunity became present. A dry cleaners! It seemed so simple, yet there was a long road ahead of us.

After almost a year of preparation and around the clock hours of working Laurens Restoration conformed their existing 80,000 square foot warehouse and installed a massive wall. Separating the existing warehouse from the new, 20,000 square foot, state of the art dry-cleaning plant. Just like that a whole new element of clean was implemented into our new business strategy.

As Laurens Cleaners got it's feet wet we decided to bring the business to the retail world. Starting off small, Laurens Cleaners had their first official retail location. Located less than a mile away from the warehouse; and placed perfectly between multiple neighborhoods and a popular shopping mall.


With beautiful stained wood panels surrounding the store from floor to ceiling, granite counter tops, a dressing/tailoring room for alterations, plasma tv's, and a custom conveyer for hangers, Laurens Cleaners was a force to reckon with.

Our dry-cleaners has since flourished and has stood out to be one of the most profitable additions we have been a part of. Owning four retail locations around the suburbs of Chicago with intent to be at nearly 15 locations in the next 5-7 years. We offer superior service and an excellence in dry-cleaning.



My two favorite locations are the ones we have our hand car wash and detail attached, Splash. When being an entrepreneur the companies are never ending. This is a new business we have recently become a part of as of late 2010. The car washes are doing well and make a great addition to our dry-cleaners.





When I graduate I plan on primarily being involved with our dry-cleaners and car wash. They are both so new and they will make as a great project for me as I learn more on the depths of our companies and how they can all grow together.

Learning The Family Business

The Laurens Boys

I have grown up with this company my entire life. I have been there all 4 times we moved from one warehouse to another. I used to crawl on the floors around the warehouse as my family would work and I would attempt to learn how to walk and talk. I eat, sleep, and breathe Laurens Restoration, literally, when I was younger my dad would come home from work after getting back from being at a loss all day and I’d go running up to him and give him a nice big long sniff, then reply to him “smells like money”. After breathing in the smell of left over soot and smoke that was radiating off his clothes.

I started working for the company when I was just 14 years old. It was the summer after graduating 8^th grade. I was finally going into high school and it was time to start becoming a man. I figured the best way to become a man, would be, to work. But I didn’t get to just go in the office and have a nice air-conditioned 9-5 job. No, I was in the warehouse with all the employees. Making $7.50 an hour and losing, what felt like my entire check, to taxes, which I couldn’t understand at the time.

My Dad and I

So here I am, this little 14 year old, working with all our employees I have known for years working my first summer job making minimum wage. It didn’t help that majority of the people I worked with only spoke Spanish. But I was trying my best to learn and keep up. I didn’t want any special treatment just because I was the owners son.

Anyway, there I am on my first day and I am sent out on a “pre-pack” and “pack-out”. That is when the contents of a homeowners belongings are inventoried, packed/wrapped, and then loaded in the truck to be brought back to our warehouse. My crew for the day arrived to the house, which was easy to find; considering it was the only house on the block with giant burnt marks everywhere and 90% of the roof missing. I’m thinking to myself, “this isn’t too bad”. Until I get inside.

The fridge had been sitting with rotten food and no electricity in the house for weeks. The stench was nauseating and I did the best that I could to hold my composure. Before I could have second thoughts I hopped right into the mess and got to work. Clearing out furniture room by room until the truck was packed to the very end. Not only was that summer was the hardest I have ever worked but it was the most I have ever learned. I fell in love with the company I grew up with my entire life and knew it was for me.

Laurens Family

As I grew older my hourly wage was raised and responsibilities have grown tremendously. All I know is employees are counting down the days for my return. And the next time I come back; it's going to be for good.

Harsh Realities of Expanding

December 2007, I am a junior in High School at Glenbrook North High School in Northbrook Illinois. Everything had been going great! Laurens Restoration was flourishing, business was coming in by the truck loads, and our company had finally reached it’s peak bringing in the most amount of business we have received in almost 2 decades of being open. No one saw it coming, especially us! The recession had officially hit and marked a global economic decline that affected the entire world economy.

At first, we thought we were lucky. Laurens Restoration isn’t run by the economy, we would say, it’s run by the elements. As long as there are still fire’s, floods, mold, and wind-damage we can’t be stopped. Or at least, that’s what we thought. Until about a full 2 years after the recession hit that’s when a harsh reality set in.

It almost seemed as if homeowners all of a sudden had no use for a restoration company in their lives anymore. Business had been officially affected by the recession and our worst nightmare is starting to unfold right before our very own eyes. It was hard to grasp the fact knowing that our company might still run off the elements; but our nations economy still can play a major role.

Once everyone became so money hungry after the recession when homeowners experienced a type loss on their house they did what they always would, and would call their insurance. It’s what happened after that which cause Laurens Restoration to have an entirely new outlook on the word, “recession”. Homeowners would collect the money from their insurance only to hire the handyman that sat on the corner of their street to do a make shift repair. They’d save a few bucks on the handyman opposed to hire a professional company. Homeowners took the risk on getting the job fixed for cheap in exchange for being able to pocket a few extra dollars.

It was officially time to buckle down. Employees had to be let off. Bonuses were skipped, and raises weren’t even an option at this point. Laurens Restoration had officially become affected by the declining economy.

After tightening the belt and being more cautious the company was saved before things got out of control. The recession is still something that is with us and we have learned to never assumer just because our company is run by the elements to think that the economy still cant play a huge issue on the amount of business a disaster restoration company can receive.

Time For A Lil' Q & A

What should I do if I find water in my home?

The most important first step is to eliminate the water source. Clean up and restoration cannot occur until the origin has been addressed. Remove small contents and small furniture items that are in the affected area as much as possible to prevent additional damage. Once the water has been addressed then our water technicians can come in to extract the remaining water to inspect affected flooring and walls to determine if they can be dried and restored or if they will need to be removed. Time is of the essence in water mitigation as secondary damage can begin to occur within 24-48 hours.

Why do I need a professional restoration company? Can’t I dry up water myself?

Mistakes and improper water mitigation can end up being far more expensive to correct if all moisture isn’t addressed. Our trained water technicians use moisture meters to measure water damage that you can’t see behind your walls and under your floors. This can help to avoid additional damage that you cannot see and might not be aware of.

Can I have my contractor come in and remove my moldy drywall?

No. If you do not put up a proper containment you will spread mold spores throughout your residence. Proper steps need to be taken to keep the mold in a controlled area.

I just had a fire, can I wash my own clothes? Is there an additive I use?

Washing your clothes will not remove the odor. There is a special process to remove the odor without adding unnecessary solutions. Our treatment process only requires one step before professionally cleaning each item back to its pre-loss condition.

I just had a fire in my home and there is black cobwebs throughout my residence, can I just wash the walls to clean the soot?

No, the cobwebs and soot particles are a result of a plastic substance that burned in the fire. The professional way to remove the soot before you clean is to use special treated dry sponges. If you just wash the walls, this will result in smearing the soot into the paint which will require re-painting.

I just had a flood and my fine wood furniture is sitting on wet carpet what should I do?

To prevent further damage to your carpet and your fine wood furniture, try to move the furniture bottom off of the wet carpet. This will prevent a furniture stain dye transfer and help to prevent further damage to the saturation of your contents.

I have to clean my carpet, can I just rent or use my mom’s carpet shampooer?

Our truck mounted cleaning machine provides a higher heat to remove more soil and our extraction allows us to dry the carpet faster. We specialize in fire and water damaged carpet as well as normal soil.

If I use a store bought cleaning solution to clean the soot off of my sofa, what should I expect?

Removing soot requires a high power vacuum to remove the soot before the cleaning process can begin. If you wet the soot it will penetrate into the fabric causing a dingy result. Some upholstered items even require a dry solvent clean process where water would ruin the fabric. Always use a professional process to increase better results.

Will regular painting hide the streaking from smoke damage?

A special process followed by a special sealer/primer is required to properly treat smoke damaged walls before painting.

Can I hire a general contractor to do the repairs to my home after a fire?

Your insurance company will prefer a professional restoration contractor who specializes in fire restoration. Laurens Restoration, Inc. is able to provide a detailed scope of work that assures proper reconstruction and deodorization with a guarantee.

After the demolition can I change the floor plan of my home?

This is the perfect time to make changes. We will work with your insurance company on repairing your house to pre-loss condition and also upgrade those items you’ve always wanted to do!

Can I just rent a pod for my personal property in front of my home while repairs are being performed?

After a casualty at your home, the last thing you want to worry about is the security and temperature conditions of your personal property. Our facility is a 50,000sf warehouse that is secured and temperature controlled to give you peace of mind. We will store your items until repairs have been completed which results in a faster repair process.