“People have been calling me for 25 years,” says Steve Grandbois. As he tells it, the reason is simple. They know whom to call when they can’t close the door on the store.
That is the core of Bigwoods Quality Handyman Services, the business Grandbois runs by himself out of Fargo. He says the work is mostly commercial. The company’s website also lists residential jobs such as storm doors, shelving, TV mounts and trim. But the business is built around a narrower promise. When something breaks at a store, he gets there fast.
“I own the business and people call me if they have an emergency and I can get there within an hour or two,” he says. The website puts same-day emergency response at one to three hours. Regular hours are weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., with weekends set aside for emergencies.
Grandbois puts his time in business at about 25 years. The Better Business Bureau lists the company’s start as April 2006 and describes it as a sole proprietorship, with Grandbois as owner. He says he grew up on a farm in North Dakota and holds a four-year college degree, which he finished with a 4.0 grade point average.
The work centers on doors and the hardware that keeps them working. According to the company’s website, that means metal door repair, closers and handles, thresholds and weather stripping, and lock work that runs from rekeying to keyless entry and master key systems. It also includes emergency store closings, rapid visits to secure a business after a break-in or an accident has left a door that won’t shut. The site says the company’s service vehicles carry the hardware to make repairs on the spot.
Grandbois says most of his customers are corporations and retailers, from big-box chains to delivery companies with locations around Fargo and the rest of North Dakota. The website names Fargo, Moorhead and West Fargo as the core service area, with commercial coverage extending up to 100 miles.
He has no crew. “Sole proprietor,” he says. When a job calls for more than one person’s skills, he brings in people he knows. “I can bring in partners if I need specialists,” he says.
That keeps things simple for the people who call. No office staff stands between a store manager and the man who will show up with the tools. The business has been BBB accredited since 2016 and holds an A+ rating from the bureau, a record Grandbois points to as a measure of his work. Asked what sets the business apart, he answers in one word: “Quality.”
The lone Google review on the company’s profile, from 2014, says the job was done well and finished on time.
The business has long handled more than doors. An archived 2018 version of the company’s website listed an unusually wide menu: drywall patching, fence and gate repair, ceiling tile replacement and custom fireplace mantels, along with ATM repairs and clothing conveyor maintenance for stores. It promised that shelving would be fastened into the framing so it could hold the weight. The page closed by telling anyone who didn’t see their job on the list to just call Steve.
The phone number on that 2018 page is the same one the company lists today.