For immediate release

Trusted relationship carries over into new territory for Crate and Barrel.

HOMEWOOD, IL (November 2008) — Graycor Construction Company Inc. (Graycor Construction), a subsidiary of the Graycor family of companies, completed the first Crate and Barrel store outside of the United States, in Toronto’s Yorkdale Shopping Centre, on schedule, in 38 weeks. This was the first venture into Canada for Crate and Barrel. Recognized as America’s number one home furnishings retailer with 160 locations nationwide, Crate and Barrel has a high focus on visual merchandising and a highly recognizable architectural design that are import components of the company’s brand.

"Graycor is familiar with our budgets, our schedules, and the quality that we need out of our stores," says John Moebes, director of construction, Crate and Barrel. "We trusted that they could put a team together that not only could do what we needed but could translate what we needed to a new market for us."

"Graycor Construction has been working internationally for over a decade," says John Van Dyck, senior project manager, Graycor Construction. "We were positioned to help Crate and Barrel meet the challenges of extending their strong franchise into Canada. One of the greatest obstacles was drawing up Canadian contracts for subcontractors and addressing the different work culture. We modified schedules and used critical trades at specific time intervals to stay on schedule and on budget," says Van Dyck.

"Graycor goes well beyond what the contract requires, providing a very good management team from the financial and scheduling perspective," says Moebes.

"Everybody in Toronto was new to Crate and Barrel, so the only real avenue the subcontractors had was Graycor’s experience and the fact that the Graycor team really knows the Crate and Barrel way," states Ron Hicks, senior project manager, Urban Electric, which provided all electrical services for the project.

"Graycor’s culture really came through on this project," states Joe Zamparo, president, International Fixtures, Inc, which provided all interior fixture and carpentry installations for the job. "Everyone was very upfront and honest about what, when and why things needed to be done. As a subcontractor we could tell Graycor had a very close working relationship with Crate and Barrel."

The Yorkville Shopping Centre location was completed on Sept. 25, 2008.

The new 35,000-square-foot location is positioned inside the shopping centre with a strong exterior and interior presence. The project added an additional 22,000 square feet to an already existing shell, turning a single-story location into a three-story structure with an underground office and stock room, as well as two retail stories above ground.

With Crate and Barrel’s high focus on visual merchandising that relies on the store as reinforcement, Graycor Construction had to source several materials for the job, including porcelain tile, metal panel, western red cedar, ponderosa pine, colored concrete flooring, maple wood flooring and stone, of which 99 percent came from Canada.

Graycor Construction is currently working on three Crate and Barrel projects in Ohio, Illinois and Florida. Overall, Graycor’s relationship with Crate and Barrel spans more than a decade and includes 20 projects completed in 12 states, coast-to-coast, as well as now in Canada.

"We are actively looking for future expansions throughout Canada," states Moebes. "And while there are places in Canada, like Quebec and Calgary, where using anybody non-local would be very difficult, there are a majority of markets that welcome outside construction companies."

About Crate and Barrel

Crate and Barrel first opened their doors in 1962 as a family business. A husband and wife team named Gordon and Carole Segal, and one eager sales associate who was enthusiastic about their vision. Today's Crate and Barrel family has grown to 160 stores and over 7,000 associates nationwide and still growing. For more information visit http://www.crateandbarrel.com

For five decades, Graycor Construction Company Inc. (Graycor Construction) has been a leader in managing and constructing mid- to large-scale commercial projects across the United States, Canada and Mexico. The company has earned a reputation for its ability to develop intimate knowledge of its clients’ project needs and to translate that knowledge into consistently and successfully completing renovation and ground-up projects coast to coast. From pre-construction planning through final project delivery, Graycor Construction’s management team utilizes its extensive knowledge of commercial markets to deliver real value across the board on each and every project. Graycor Construction serves a select group of clients across a full spectrum of commercial markets across North America.

The Graycor companies – Graycor Industrial Constructors Inc., Graycor Construction Company Inc., Graycor Blasting Company Inc., and Graycor International – provide a wide variety of industrial and commercial construction services, as well as industrial maintenance technologies, across North America. As a top ranking industry leader with annual revenues in excess of $600 million, Graycor commits to safe working environments, demands excellence and rewards passion. Established in 1921, Graycor employs more than 1,500 construction specialists at the Chicago Headquarters, regional offices and project locations across the United States, Canada and Mexico. For more information on the Graycor family of companies, visit www.graycor.com or call 1-800-455-0440.