ABOUT STEPHEN
Stephen Fanuka has built himself an unsurpassed reputation among the leading decorators,
architects and elite clientele in Manhattan as the go-to guy for high quality general contracting
and luxury interior renovations. He was driven by a passion for his family's business and has
grown it from a small father-son custom cabinet shop into the prestigious firm it is today,
Fanuka, Inc.
His father, Rod Fanuka, an immigrant from Croatia started his small cabinetry business back
in 1967. At an early age, the senior Fanuka trained his son the art of cabinet making in the old
school European tradition. Stephen would accompany Rod to work where he would learn the
intricacies of this generations-old master craft and the nuances of the trade. Rod was one of
the only cabinet makers in his profession to work with the leading interior decorators of the
time such as Dorothy Draper, Sister Parish and Eleanor McMillan Brown.
Stephen continued to work side by side with his father throughout high school and college.
After graduating from St. John's University, he did a brief stint in advertising at Young & Rubican.
In 1991, he left the ad world for good and worked his way toward his contracting license in
order to achieve his goal of expanding the business.
In 1994, Stephen obtained his General Contractor's license, was offered his first contracting
job, and the rest was history. He began Fanuka, Inc. with a simple but impactful mission
statement that still resonates with his high end clients to this very day: "Give the client what
they paid for – a first rate job with class A service. Make the experience a pleasurable
one – one that the client will positively remember. Chances are he will tell a friend and they'll
tell a friend." Stephen Fanuka was right - they did.
Fanuka, Inc. works with some of the world's top designers and architects such as Francois
Catroux, Jacques Grange, Eric Cohler, Thom Filicia, Nancy Bozhardt, Philip Gorrivan, Gordon
Kahn and Christopher Maya well as celebrities such as Bethenny Frankel, Beyonce, Lindsay
Lohan, Rosanna Scotto and Tony Bennett.
Stephen is a contributor to The New York Times Magazine's "Key" section, and his work has
been featured in numerous shelter publications and national newspapers as well as on
The Nate Berkus Show and LX-TV's "Open House NY" and "George to the Rescue".
He is listed in the Franklin Report as one of the city's premier full-service contractors.
Stephen's first television series, "Million Dollar Contractor" premiered in October 2011
on the DIY Network and in April 2012 moved to HGTV where M$C will debut it's second
season this fall. Fanuka also has a leading role as the residential contractor for Bethenny
Frankel's new downtown digs on her Bravo series "Bethany Ever After" which premiered in
January 2012. His book, co-written with Ed Lewine titled "What's A Homeowner to Do?"
was published by Artisan Books in November and is available on Amazon.com and
independent and chain booksellers across the country.
Press Contact: Christina Juarez & Company 917 463 3685
cjuarez@cjandco.com
