Dream Design Builders of Rancho Bernardo Honored as Ethical by Better Business Bureau

The San Diego Better Business Bureau (BBB), San Diego's largest county‑wide business organization, recently announced recipients of its 2012 Torch Awards for Marketplace Ethics. Dream Design Builders, a Rancho Bernardo-based residential remodeling company specializing in room additions and kitchen and bath remodeling, was selected as a winner in the five-to-10 employee category.

Founded in 1987 by Jay Riordan, the company name reflects the company’s design-and-build capabilities and its invitation to “design your own reality.” Riordan encourages homeowners to be involved in the design process, including establishing start and completion dates. The company’s mission statement is: “To inspire, create and preserve dreams.” The company’s core principles include a commitment to honesty, integrity and accountability, a dedication to clients and their families and a promise of confidentiality.

The company’s core values include a “commitment to clients for excellence in everything we do, commitment to each employee to be valued and respected and commitment as an industry professional to conduct our business with integrity.” The company’s remodeling philosophy is: “It has nothing to do with lumber, nails, stucco or concrete.” The company focuses on making dreams a reality not only for clients, but also for employees and their families as well, the BBB said.

Now in its 15th year, the Torch Awards is the BBB's annual awards program honors outstanding local for‑profit companies and non‑profit charitable organizations that have demonstrated a commitment to ethical business practices, both in operations and in terms of being ethical, reliable and responsive to employees, vendors and customers, the BBB said

Winners and finalists were selected in categories based on number of employees. Other winners of a 2012 BBB Torch Award included (categories based on number of employees appear in parenthesis): On-Site Tech Support (one-to-four); Reilly Financial Advisors (11-to-24); Quality Controlled Manufacturing, Inc. (25-to-99); Coles Fine Flooring (100-to-249); JW Floor Covering (250-499); and, Pacific Safety Center (charity/non-profit, winner).

Finalists included: Milholland Electric, Inc. (five-to10); San Diego Law Firm (11-to-24);  Action Air Conditioning, Heating & Solar (25-to-99); ASI Heating and Air (25-to-99);  Ideal Plumbing, Heating, Air & Electrical (25-to-99); Anderson Plumbing Heating and Air (100-to-249); and, Bill Howe Family of Companies (100-to-249).

“Consumers want to do business with ethical companies, and our Torch Awards is one way to identify companies that maintain a competitive advantage by adhering to BBB ethical standards,” said Sheryl Bilbrey, San Diego BBB president and chief executive officer. “The Torch Awards program is designed to promote not only the importance of ethical business practices, but the willingness and efforts made by outstanding businesses to ensure that our marketplace remains fair and honorable. It’s the way San Diego celebrates ethical business practices in our marketplace.”

Each year, thousands of U.S. businesses are entered in local Torch Award competitions conducted by BBBs in every region of the country. Winning entries from the San Diego competition will be forwarded to the Council of Better Business Bureaus, the parent organization for the BBB network, for an international competition.

The non-profit San Diego BBB, which opened in 1921, is San Diego’s largest county-wide business membership organization with 6,000 accredited businesses and charities. The BBB promotes business ethics through voluntary self‑regulation, consumer and business education, and helps consumers with free pre‑purchase information and consumer protection advice, including reliability reports on more than 45,000 local companies. Before buying decisions are made, consumers are encouraged to phone the BBB's free 24‑hour Consumer Helpline at (858) 496‑2131 or (800) 600‑7050, or visit the website at www.bbb.org, to obtain free information and a list of BBB accredited businesses in a particular type of industry.