Jericho Home Improvements CEO Killed in Kansas City

John Bartrom, founder and CEO of Kansas City-based Jericho Home Improvements died Sunday, January 7. He was 46.

Kansas City Police Department officers responded to a call for a medical emergency in a business parking lot just after midnight on January 7 and found Bartrom unresponsive. Emergency medical services transported Bartrom to an area hospital where it was discovered that he had been shot. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

The investigation into details surrounding his death is ongoing.
 

Doing Business the Right Way

Bartrom founded Jericho Home Improvements in 2009. The business specializes in kitchen and bathroom remodeling and is the “largest custom remodeler in Kansas City” and the “largest independent kitchen and bath remodeling company in the nation,” according to the company's website.

Home improvement companies top the list of complaints with the Better Business Bureau, and Bartrom made it his mission to change that by maintaining high standards in business operations and product offerings. He imposed beliefs about hiring carefully, never cutting corners on installation, and developed a Consumer Awareness Guide to protect consumers from ill-intentioned contractors.

Bartrom was the face of the business and was well-known in Kansas City for his regular appearances in the company’s television commercials.

But Bartrom’s impact extended far beyond the walls of his remodeling customers’ homes.
 

Bartrom Believed in Giving Generously

His passion for giving extended into his core business principles.

Bartrom proudly shared that Jericho Home Improvements is the largest donor to Habitat for Humanity of Kansas City, where his team has donated labor and materials. The business is also a major contributor to Living Water International and The Global Orphan Project.

“John’s concern was always for customers, employees, and orphans above everything else,” says Level 10 Contractor CEO Rich Harshaw. “He never wavered on this, and it wasn’t just for show with him.”

Harshaw, who worked closely with Bartrom for more than nine years as his marketing and advertising consultant, added that he was a great businessman but an even better humanitarian.

“He was inspiring in so many ways,” says Harshaw. “He will be sorely missed.”