How Bergman Construction turned reliability into a nationwide reputation for stress-free delivery across sectors
From a 1980s office building converted into a luxury hotel to a high-tech healthcare center and a groundbreaking new home for lions and hyenas, Bergman Construction (Bergman) has built them all. What began in 1982 as a small family operation, run by brothers Mark and Dan Bergman, has grown into a nationwide commercial contractor. Headquartered in California, the team initially focused on retail and food service projects, before advancing into other regions and offering in-house development and architecture alongside new builds and renovations.
Today, Bergman has expanded significantly, with expert construction teams operating nationwide. However, it’s not actually scale that continues to win repeat business, explains Vice President, Peter Livermore. “What clients are really looking for is somebody who can provide a smooth experience,” he tells us. “Our method today is in our values – accountability, engagement, and quality – which come down to a focus on excellence in the daily delivery of the work product.” Peter also credits the strength of Bergman’s client relationships as a key factor in the company’s long-term success, with a significant number of repeat clients.
“Clients hire us as a construction specialist – construction is an interesting and dynamic business – but if the process is cumbersome, and they’re unable to oversee the building process, they can become frustrated and I fully understand why! Therefore, we pride ourselves on delivering that smooth, high-quality experience to our clients and partners, which enables us to win future opportunities together.”
Bergman’s services include general contracting for commercial renovation and new development projects across every US state, where it uses both design-build and design-bid-build delivery models. It also has a development services group that can carry a client’s vision from crayon drawing all the way to completion. “We partner with clients who need low-rise, mid-scale construction product in any US town,” continues Peter. “We’re highly flexible in product type and location.” The company’s current regional focus includes Seattle, California, Phoenix, Tampa, Nashville, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, and Dallas, among others, and its primary sectors with continuous market share are retail, building repositioning, restaurants, entertainment, grocery, health, industrial, office, wellness, education, and worship.
A further growth signal is the group’s 2025 rebrand, which updated its corporate entity name to Bergman Build LLC. “Previously, our branding was presented as Bergman Construction,” elaborates Peter. “We still present to clients as Bergman Construction, but our formal legal name is Bergman Build LLC. The rebrand was designed to support growth as part of our long-term plan, giving us clarity and simplicity of name, while our guiding principles are built into the brand too: build, lead, serve. Three simple words that represent the most important attributes of what we do and how we serve our customers.”
Unique project portfolio
With an ever-expanding portfolio of notable projects, Bergman’s guiding principles are clearly working well. Not only has it recently completed a grocery store on the ground floor of a mixed-use building in Santa Monica, but it is currently finishing a brand-new CarMax retail unit in San Marcos, Texas, spanning multiple buildings and complete with an auction property attached. “CarMax is a very large and beautiful project,” highlights Peter. “I’m also incredibly excited about the ambulatory surgery center in Los Angeles we’re leading on – it’s a healthcare project next to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, comprising a suite of operating rooms. The center serves multiple purposes but is mostly used for IVF, with the lab supporting that work.” Bergman is also converting a disused office building in the city into a Hilton-brand hotel, under the Pan Am flag, with a view to having it fully open and booking well ahead of the Los Angeles Olympics.
Over in Tampa Bay, Florida, Peter reveals the firm is about to turn over an extremely unique project: “We’re working on a lion and hyena exhibit at Busch Gardens, where we transformed about 90 percent of the old exhibit, reusing only a few existing structures. There’s an underground veterinary area, and an upper area with African-style rock formations and viewing points for visitors. All the display areas, walking paths, piping, and infrastructure are brand new.”
Additionally, the company recently launched a mentoring program and is focused on developing the next generation of team leaders internally over the next six months, prioritizing risk review, pre-contract award evaluation, cost estimating accuracy, operations processes, sales growth, client outreach growth, supervision excellence, and systems training. “My passion is mentoring, training, and advancing our team – people of strong ability and excellent character,” states Peter. “We’re investing extra time and energy in our people, giving each of them a one-to-one mentor for a six-month period before transitioning them to another mentor focused on their specific development needs. My belief is that a person with character and capability is the best asset for a company looking to grow.”
Although Bergman’s ultimate five-year goal is to double annual sales and quadruple client contacts, Peter’s personal vision is ‘a strong group of team members who are entrepreneurial in spirit and can advance the business through an intense focus on a small region.’ “The company is poised for growth and we’re looking for key leaders to join our team,” he concludes. “We’ve got a strong base, a strong brand, and specific regions that need people to work with them, support them, and in many cases, lead them.”