Cobblestone Development

“I was putting siding on a house and I took a piece of plywood and put my phone number on it, and that was that!”

So says Bill Conforti of 773-929-9275, the telephone number that has connected homeowners with Siding-1 Windows-1 Exteriors for more than a quarter of a century.

Conforti launched the company and still maintains a small roll in it. But he’s now concentrating most of his energies on Cobblestone Development Inc., a commercial and residential remodeling company he formed 20 years ago.

Conforti has covered a lot of ground in the intervening years, but it was those early days installing siding that set him on his career path.

“I came from the corporate world, working for two coffee companies for 16 years,” recalls Conforti. “They wanted me to move to New Jersey and I had no desire to go. I always had a love of renovating and remodeling. I bought and renovated my first building when I was 24 years old.”

Years later, Conforti was installing siding on one of his buildings on North Southport in Chicago and passersby would ask him if he was available to work on their home. That’s when Conforti wrote his number down on that fateful plank and Siding-1 Windows-1 Exterior was born.

The man himself was born more than four decades earlier in Calabria, immigrating to the United States with his parents in 1955 when he was 11 years old. He first lived on Taylor Street and ultimately moved to the West Side of Chicago.

A man of many talents, he graduated from DeVry Technical Institute with a degree in industrial electronics, and earned a real estate license when he started Siding-1 that he maintains to this day.

His training as a realtor served as a springboard for a thriving career in real estate developer, with more than two-dozen properties in his current portfolio.

But Conforti’s main passion is Cobblestone, a company that specializes in kitchen, bath and basement remodeling, but also does decks, porches and additions. As certified 203k contractors, they can walk homeowners through the low-interest FHA loan process, and guide them through every step of planning, securing approval for, building and completing their home improvements.

According to Conforti, business has been booming of late.

“People have grown tired of waiting to do home improvements,” Conforti notes. “Your home is your largest investment, and more and more people are taking better and better care of their homes.”

“There are positive signs that this year is going to be outstanding,” he adds. As a result, he is expanding his team, which Conforti sees as both a business necessity and a civic duty. “Hiring is important because everyone needs a job,” he shares. “We do our best to hire qualified people and get people back to work.”

Conforti is active in the community, believing that giving back is as important as making a buck. He is active with the Hamlin Park boxing program for years, and he counts boxing Olympian David Diaz among his close friend.

Conforti is active in the community, believing that giving back is as important as making a buck. He is active with the Hamlin Park boxing program for years, and he counts boxing Olympian and World Champ David Diaz among his close friend.

Conforti is proud of the fact that 60 percent of his business comes from referrals.

“My commitment is to have a satisfied customer,” he explains. “My philosophy is, every job I do, I want a referral.”

And that has kept Conforti going strong for more than a quarter of a century.

For more information, call 773-661-0606 or visit www.cobblestonedevelopment.com