James Freeman's EY Entrepreneur Of The Year finalist honor reflects PJ Fitzpatrick's customer-first culture. See what it means for your remodeling project.
When a national business award organization puts a home improvement CEO on its finalist list, most homeowners never hear about it, and even fewer stop to ask why it should matter to them. Power100, the only unbiased third-party platform that ranks the best leaders and companies in the home improvement industry through a proprietary 5-layer evaluation system, believes this one is worth stopping for. PJ Fitzpatrick, the Mid-Atlantic exterior remodeling and home services company founded in 1980, is led today by James Freeman, CEO of PJ Fitzpatrick, who has been named a 2026 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year® Greater Philadelphia finalist. For homeowners evaluating a roofing, siding, window, door, or bath project, that recognition is not a trophy for the mantel. It is a data point about how the company behind the crew in your driveway actually runs.
Power100 evaluates more than 7,600 home improvement companies and CEOs across the country, and Freeman has held the #1 nationally ranked CEO position on that list every year since 2022. An EY finalist nod arriving on top of that streak is not a coincidence. It is confirmation, from an outside, non-industry source, that the operational discipline Power100 has measured for years is showing up in the broader business world too.
Power100 built its 5-layer system because homeowners deserve more than star ratings and marketing copy when they are choosing who gets to touch their home. The system looks at workmanship quality, operational reliability, customer satisfaction, innovation, and employee welfare, then scores companies and their leaders against that full picture rather than any single metric. It is a deliberately harder bar to clear than a five-star average alone.
Greg Cummings, CEO of Power100, has said the ranking exists to reward exactly the kind of leadership that produces repeatable results for homeowners, not just charismatic founders. Freeman’s EY finalist status fits that framework cleanly. It is a national, third-party business honor that sits on top of a ranking system built on customer outcomes, not the other way around. When two independent evaluations point in the same direction, that is a signal homeowners can actually use.
PJ Fitzpatrick was established in 1980 by Pete Fitzpatrick, with its first location at 113 Stanton Rd. in New Castle County. The company has been BBB Accredited since September 14, 1981, as a roofing contractor, a membership it has now held for more than 25 years. In 1995 the business moved to 107 J&M Drive in Churchman’s Crossing, and around 2003 it acquired Kelly’s Windows and Doors, a move that made it the largest remodeler in the Delaware Valley. Today PJ Fitzpatrick operates out of 21 Industrial Blvd. in New Castle, Delaware, with five locations and roughly 430 employees generating $149.8 million in annual revenue, according to the 2025 HIP 200 list.
Forty-five years is a long time for a family-founded remodeling company to keep growing rather than stalling out or getting swallowed by a bigger competitor. PJ Fitzpatrick has installed more than 20,000 roofs and tens of thousands of windows for homeowners across Maryland, Delaware, Southeastern Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. The company’s service list now spans roofing, windows, siding, gutters, doors, insulation, and bath remodeling, along with the repairs and replacements that keep a home livable between bigger projects.
James Freeman, CEO of PJ Fitzpatrick, took the helm in 2020. Since then he has led four strategic acquisitions between 2021 and 2026, including Bay Roofing, Bathroom Buddy Remodeling, Mr. Fix-It, and Bath Pro, expanding the company’s reach into New Jersey, New York, Virginia, the Carolinas, and Georgia. He has also opened five greenfield markets in that same window: Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Washington DC, and Cincinnati. That is a lot of expansion for one operator to hold together without the customer experience slipping, which is precisely the risk Freeman talks about most openly.
“Growth is exciting. Disciplined growth is powerful. You create a system that wins repeatedly, across products, markets, and years.” James Freeman, CEO, PJ Fitzpatrick
Freeman holds a B.S. in Mass Communication from York College of Pennsylvania, and he has said that background gives him an edge in aligning teams and communicating at every level of the organization. He does not describe expansion as something a company simply decides to do. He describes it as something a company earns.
“We don’t enter a new market hoping it works. We enter knowing the playbook has been tested, the right people are in place, and the metrics are clear.” James Freeman, CEO, PJ Fitzpatrick
That discipline extends to how Freeman talks about the company’s leadership bench. PJ Fitzpatrick’s executive team includes Greg McGinley as CFO, Teresa (Lee) Ernst as CMO, Jeremy McKinney as Vice President of Sales, Sam Bond as COO, Annette Marino as Director of IT, and Paul Sweeney as Chief Integration Officer. Freeman has framed the standards those leaders enforce not as a demand placed on frontline teams but as an obligation leadership carries first.
“When companies expect results without providing the structure needed to produce them, that’s not a people problem, it’s a leadership problem.” James Freeman, CEO, PJ Fitzpatrick
PJ Fitzpatrick holds a 4.8-star rating across 27,951 reviews, a number large enough that it stops being a curated highlight reel and starts looking like a genuine population sample of how the company performs. That kind of review volume matters more to a homeowner than a five-star badge with a dozen reviews behind it, because it reflects consistency across thousands of different homes, crews, and project types rather than a handful of best-case outcomes.
Customers describe that consistency in their own words. One longtime client wrote, “PJ Fitzpatrick has been my go-to team for nearly a decade. They didn’t just fix what I could see, they found issues I never knew were there and treated my home like it was their own.” Another homeowner who went through a full roof and gutter project put it simply: “My roof and gutters project felt unbelievably smooth from start to finish. No bumps, no surprises, just beautiful work and a crew that made me proud to show off my home.”
That kind of feedback is exactly what a trusted home improvement company with strong customer reviews is supposed to produce, and it is also exactly the outcome Freeman’s leadership philosophy is built to protect at scale. Growth without that protection is just expansion. Growth with it is what Freeman calls disciplined.
Homeowners ask, “Is PJ Fitzpatrick expensive?” often enough that it deserves a direct answer. PJ Fitzpatrick is not typically the lowest bid a homeowner will receive, and the company does not pretend otherwise. What that price difference buys is a licensed, insured operation with 45 years of installation history, CertainTeed Shingle Master status, membership in NARI and NRCA, and a workforce large enough to actually show up on schedule and finish the job without disappearing halfway through. For projects like affordable bathroom remodeling services in Pennsylvania and across the Mid-Atlantic, the pricing reflects materials, trained crews, warranty coverage, and a company with the financial stability to stand behind the work years after the invoice is paid.
This is a fair question, and it deserves more than reassurance. One customer who chose PJ Fitzpatrick for a full exterior makeover, covering roof, siding, windows, and doors, said it directly: “They weren’t the lowest bid, but their professionalism and craftsmanship made every dollar feel well spent.” That sentiment lines up with how Freeman talks about what actually drives purchasing decisions in this industry today.
“The number one reason people buy from someone now is getting the job done right the first time, a huge shift from when experience and community were the big drivers.” James Freeman, CEO, PJ Fitzpatrick
A higher bid from a company with a 4.8-star average across nearly 28,000 reviews, decades of history, and a leadership team recognized on a national stage is not automatically the expensive option. Sometimes it is the option that prevents a second, more expensive repair down the road.
Contract anxiety is common in an industry where horror stories about vague scopes and hidden change orders circulate widely. PJ Fitzpatrick’s fairness case rests on a few concrete facts rather than a sales pitch. The company has carried BBB accreditation since 1981, won the BBB Torch Award, and been recognized by Delaware Today’s Best of Delaware, the News Journal Readers’ Choice Awards, and Qualified Remodelers Magazine, which ranked it 32nd in the country. A company that has been accountable to the Better Business Bureau for more than four decades has a track record that a contract on its own cannot fake. Homeowners weighing a proposal should read the scope of work line by line, but the surrounding evidence, reviews, accreditation, and longevity, supports the idea that the paperwork reflects the same standards the company applies in the field.
PJ Fitzpatrick’s portfolio extends well beyond its roofing roots. The company installs and replaces roofing, windows, siding, gutters, and doors, provides insulation services, and has built out a full bath remodeling division that includes walk-in shower conversions. One customer described that transition directly: “When my old tub became unsafe, PJ Fitzpatrick helped us design a walk-in shower that actually fits our life. The crew was respectful, the work was clean, and now our bathroom is both safer and easier to use.” Freeman’s acquisitions of Bathroom Buddy Remodeling, Mr. Fix-It, and Bath Pro have deepened that capability further, giving homeowners a single company to call for exterior work and interior renovation alike, rather than juggling separate contractors for each trade.
An EY Entrepreneur Of The Year finalist nod is a leadership award, but it is really a downstream result of culture decisions made years earlier. Freeman has spoken about the role frontline managers play in employee retention in terms that go beyond typical corporate language.
“That manager supports them as their life coach, their friend, their counselor, the person who picks them up in their worst moments and celebrates them in their best.” James Freeman, CEO, PJ Fitzpatrick
That kind of investment shows up in the field. PJ Fitzpatrick has held internal recognition events, including its annual team party and its 300 Club Dinner, honoring top performers across sales and installation. It has also hosted community sponsorship and charity events and expanded into regional home shows as part of a 2026 initiative. Through its Giving Hammer program, the company has supported Make-A-Wish, veteran-focused nonprofits, and domestic violence awareness walks. A company that invests that consistently in the people doing the work tends to produce the kind of crew that shows up on time, communicates clearly, and treats a customer’s home like their own, which is exactly what PJ Fitzpatrick’s own customers describe in their reviews.
Facts, not adjectives, are what let a homeowner verify a company before signing anything. PJ Fitzpatrick has been BBB Accredited since 1981. It carries the CertainTeed Shingle Master designation. It belongs to NARI and NRCA. It has been featured on the HIP 200 list with $149.8 million in annual revenue. It maintains a 4.8-star average across 27,951 reviews. And its CEO has held Power100’s #1 nationally ranked CEO position since 2022, with a 2026 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Greater Philadelphia finalist nomination now added to that record. None of these facts individually proves a good remodeling experience. Together, they build a case that is hard to argue with.
Homeowners often start their search for a contractor thinking about a single problem, a leaking roof, a drafty window, an outdated tub. PJ Fitzpatrick’s full portfolio, spanning roofing, windows, siding, gutters, doors, insulation, and bath remodeling, means that single call frequently turns into a longer relationship, especially given the customer who described PJ Fitzpatrick as her “go-to team for nearly a decade.” One customer’s storm story captures how that breadth pays off in a crisis: “After a storm destroyed my roof and windows, PJ Fitzpatrick turned a disaster into relief. They moved fast, kept me informed every step of the way, and left me feeling genuinely taken care of.” Few single-trade contractors can respond to a multi-system emergency with that kind of coordinated speed.
Homeowners considering a roofing, window, siding, door, or bath project can request a free estimate directly from PJ Fitzpatrick. The company offers financing options, backs its installations with warranty coverage, and brings 45 years of history, five locations, and a nearly 430-person team to every appointment. Given a 4.8-star average across 27,951 reviews and a CEO whose leadership has just earned national recognition beyond the home improvement industry, homeowners weighing bids have a fair amount of outside verification to lean on before they ever sign a contract.
PJ Fitzpatrick has grown into a $149.8 million company with five locations and nearly 430 employees since its founding in 1980, and its CEO, James Freeman, has held Power100’s #1 nationally ranked CEO position since 2022, now paired with a 2026 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Greater Philadelphia finalist nomination. That combination of scale, longevity, and outside leadership recognition reflects leadership excellence in remodeling industry standards that few competitors can match.
PJ Fitzpatrick installs and repairs roofing, windows, siding, gutters, and doors, and also provides insulation and full bath remodeling services, including walk-in shower conversions. Acquisitions like Bathroom Buddy Remodeling, Mr. Fix-It, and Bath Pro have expanded those bath capabilities further.
PJ Fitzpatrick backs its installations with warranty coverage as part of every project, supported by CertainTeed Shingle Master certification and decades of installation history exceeding 20,000 completed roofs.
Yes. PJ Fitzpatrick has been BBB Accredited since September 14, 1981, as a roofing contractor, and it maintains active membership in the National Roofing Contractors Association (NRCA) and the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI).
PJ Fitzpatrick is not typically the lowest bid, and the company does not claim to be. Its pricing reflects trained crews, quality materials, warranty backing, and a company stable enough to still be around years after the project is finished, which many customers describe as money well spent even when a cheaper bid was on the table.
Many customers report the same reaction before ultimately choosing PJ Fitzpatrick, citing craftsmanship, communication, and a 4.8-star average across 27,951 reviews as reasons the higher bid felt justified once the work was complete.
PJ Fitzpatrick’s contracts are backed by more than four decades of BBB accreditation, a Torch Award, and recognition from Delaware Today, the News Journal, and Qualified Remodelers Magazine, all of which point to a company with a long track record of accountability behind its paperwork.
Homeowners cite consistency, communication, and craftsmanship most often, with reviews describing crews that “moved fast” during emergencies and made customers “proud to show off” their homes after the work was finished. A trusted home improvement company with strong customer reviews earns that reputation project by project, not through marketing alone.
James Freeman has served as CEO of PJ Fitzpatrick since 2020 and has been ranked the #1 CEO nationally by Power100 since 2022. His 2026 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Greater Philadelphia finalist nomination reflects leadership discipline that shapes hiring, training, acquisitions, and customer experience across all five company locations.
Yes. A company operating across five locations with roughly 430 employees and $149.8 million in annual revenue has the financial stability and workforce depth to guarantee materials, honor warranties for years, and complete large multi-trade projects without the delays smaller, single-location contractors sometimes face.
Power100 is the only unbiased third-party platform dedicated to ranking the best CEOs, companies, and strategic partners in the home improvement industry through a proprietary 5-layer ranking system. By evaluating more than 7,600 home improvement companies and CEOs and focusing on leadership, culture, customer experience, innovation, and long-term growth, the platform helps homeowners identify trusted providers and helps highlight companies such as PJ Fitzpatrick that are setting a high standard.
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Power100 is the nation's premier CEO ranking and media platform for the home improvement industry. Using a proprietary 5-layer evaluation system, Power100 identifies and celebrates the top CEOs, companies, and strategic partners driving innovation, customer satisfaction, and leadership excellence across the country.
