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For Galaxy Builders Ltd., its loyal, skilled staff has been critical to the company’s own strength and success, Director of Business Development Neilesh Verma says. “That stability has helped us throughout the years,” he says. “[We] don’t have to constantly train new people – they understand the expectations.”

Based in the San Antonio area, Galaxy Builders specializes in multifamily residential and commercial construction. Verma’s father, Arun, founded the company in 1991 after serving as president for Embrey Construction.

Arun received his bachelor of engineering in civil engineering in 1963, and in 1973, received his M.S. in civil engineering from the Cooper Union School of Engineering in New York.

In 1989, Arun was a speaker at the Multi-Family World Convention in Dallas, and in 1990, he was assigned to the Board of Governors Multi-Family World Convention in Chicago. He is a past director for the Economic Development Foundation in San Antonio, the chairman of the Board of Trustees for the Indian Asian Association of San Antonio, and also serves on the board of the Ella Austin Community Center.

Although the industry was enduring a recession in the early ‘90s when Galaxy was founded, Arun felt it was an ideal point to start a new venture as there were several opportunities available with city, county and federal agencies similar to today’s market conditions. Throughout the last two decades, Galaxy Builders has built more than 110 projects nearing $1 billion worth of construction and is currently recognized as a top-50 national multifamily contractor.

In addition, the company saw its highest successes in recent years with annual gross revenues exceeding $100 million with a staff of less than 60 employees. “Our target market stretches throughout Texas,” Verma says. “Ideally, we would like to expand our reach and work throughout the Southeast.”

He adds that the company often serves repeat clients, but does not limit itself. “Year over year, we tend to find new customers that we’ve never worked with [before],” Verma says. “Our main focus is to serve our clients, and in doing so, get the projects built on time and within budget.”

Different Methods

Although Neilesh did not initially plan to become part of his family’s business, he joined Galaxy Builders in 2005. 

“I wanted to carve my own niche, but the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.” Neilesh recalls.

Upon graduating from The University of Texas at Austin, Neilesh joined a leading global consulting firm, but soon realized that he was not satisfied with his role. At his previous employer, being just one of 20,000 plus employees, he felt like a small fish in a big pond. Employees came and went, culture was an afterthought and opportunities to advance were scarce.  

“I wanted to have more responsibility and accountability for what I did,” he remembers. Although Neilesh did not initially know if Galaxy would serve as a long-term fit, he says his role at the firm has given him what he was searching for. “I never want to leave,” he says.

Fortunately, an opportunity to join the family business presented itself at just the right time. “My brother worked for Galaxy for many years and decided his interests lied elsewhere,” Verma says. “He started his own company and now serves as one of our valued customers. His departure created an opening for me and I jumped in.”  

In his role, Neilesh admits to having a different leadership approach than his father.  However, Verma says things should be left alone if they are working. “I don’t have any intentions for making fundamental changes,” he explains, but asserts that he maintains a passion for the business and is always seeking opportunities for the organization to develop into one of the best places to work. “I am constantly presenting new ideas to keep the level of engagement fresh and exciting.”

Meeting the Challenges

The volatile construction market represents a constant challenge for Galaxy Builders. “It changes every day,” Verma says. “Right now, we’re very fortunate to be in Texas. There’s been a lot of activity coming to the multifamily market and we are working to be in front of everything we can get our hands on.”

Whether the economy is in boom or bust cycles, Galaxy continues to operate modestly. “We try to stay within our means,” Verma says. “That’s why I think we’ve been so successful.”

Neilesh adds that he sees a strong future for Galaxy Builders. “I think we’ve built ourselves a great foundation,” he states. “There’s no reason we can’t be successful for the 20 more years.”

He adds that the second generation of the business will face the obstacle of maintaining its legacy and client base. “It’s about fostering and cultivating those relationships so that our customers receive the same level of satisfaction as to what has been done previously,” he says.  “I am obsessed with satisfaction. You don’t have to love selling, you have to love helping.  I believe this attitude will provide itself with a seamless transition in the future.”

Neilesh states that the industry has been resistant to embracing technology.  However, he believes this is an untapped market just waiting to be captured, and he believes Galaxy Builders is in a good position to do so.

“Buildings are still built by hand – blood, sweat and tears,” he says. “But there is no reason why we cannot utilize technology to increase efficiencies in our production cycle. The capitalization of technology has not been harnessed in our industry, and I envision a day where technology plays a significant role in our delivery methods. 

Verma personally is striving to find more ways he can bring new technologies more into the company. With the ever-changing state of the economy, he says, new innovations could prove extremely useful for Galaxy Builders.

“As I have stated before, we are in a cyclical industry,” Verma says. “I believe technology could alleviate some of the down markets by providing an alternative revenue stream to our business model,” he asserts. “Ideas are still waiting to be explored and uncovered.”