About
Senior-led work, built and run in-house.
THICKRIM is a Chicago design and development studio. We bring 15+ years of enterprise web experience to small and mid-size businesses across the Midwest, and we stay on to run what we build. Old-school service, new-school systems: the person who plans your project designs it, ships it, and answers the phone when you call.
Kyle Willis
Founder · THICKRIM
I founded THICKRIM after 15+ years building, maintaining, and improving websites, systems, and digital platforms for real organizations. I lead design and engineering on every engagement, which is the whole point: the person who scopes your project is the person who builds it and the person who picks up when you call.
THICKRIM also ships its own products, Garage Bae and WashNear.Me, so I work on my own software before it touches yours. No theory, no relay race, no “that's the other vendor's problem.”
How we work
Five things that don't change.
The operating principles behind every project, whether it's a one-page site or the software behind the counter.
Senior hands, start to finish
I run design and engineering on every project. You're not funding someone's on-the-job training, so decisions are sharper and there are fewer expensive mistakes.
We run what we build
Hosting, security, updates, monitoring, and support live with us. When something breaks, the person who answers the phone is the person who built it.
One number, one system
Site, store, email, forms, automations, and custom software under one roof. Nothing falls into the gap between vendors because there is no gap.
Honest scope
We'll tell you the path that costs you less, even when it's less work for us. The goal is a system that earns its keep, not a bigger invoice.
Built for the Midwest
Chicago-based, working across Chicagoland, Milwaukee, Indiana, Iowa, and Kansas, for shops, service businesses, and growing companies that still answer the phone.
Start the conversation
Bring us the thing that's slowing you down.
Tell us what you're trying to fix. We'll scope the right first move, and you'll hear back within one business day from the senior developer who builds, ships, and runs his own software.
Start a project