Five Design Errors to Avoid in Your Next Kitchen Remodel: Part One

As Don Crawley wrote in his article, Five Quick and Easy Ways to Drive Your Customers Away (Biznik), “I like to write and talk about things TO do, instead of things NOT to do.  Talking about what not to do is similar to telling someone not to think of a pink elephant.  What immediately comes to mind of course is a pink elephant.  Cliché? perhaps, but true.  We tend to do that upon which we focus, regardless of whether it’s what to do or what not to do.”  Having said that, I’m going to share some common mistakes: 

When a new customer enters our showroom at Cabinets by Trivonna, one of the questions we ask before beginning to design is, “What do you want to accomplish by remodeling your kitchen?” or “How do you use your kitchen?” 

Answers vary greatly: From the vague, “I don’t like my old oak cabinets”, to Kaaren Winkler’s declaration, “This (the kitchen) is homework central.”

In the past, kitchens were considered a utilitarian room where mom could move from sink to stove to refrigerator with a minimum of steps.  “If you’re not the cook, get out of the way!”  But today, the kitchen is the hub of the home – it’s the gathering place.  Customers answer, “I need more counter space so that Aunt Mildred can prepare her famed Mince Meat Pie, while Sister Sally can toss her sensational salad and Uncle Eric can put the finishing touches on his Eggplant Appetizers.” Or, “Traffic flow.”  At Cabinets by Trivonna, our tag line is Creating Nurturing Environments… because that’s where it Happens!”   (One customer quiped: “I bought an $1800 couch for the living room, and it’s never been set on — it’s not in the kitchen”)

When Marie Sullivan wanted to remodel her kitchen, she told us that she wanted a place to entertain.  As her Kitchen was being installed, she looked at the Island Trivonna had designed and called us with deep concern. “You could land a plane on our island – I call it the Nimitz!”  She wanted to decrease the size.  Trivonna told her to have a couple of parties and then let us know what she thought.  A few weeks later, she called: “I love my Nimitz!”  Marie got what she needed because we knew what she wanted.

"How can I entertain in this?"

So, the first step to a well laid out kitchen is to clearly state how you want to use it.

See you next time as we look into some of the mistakes one might make in designing a Kitchen.

Ross

“You could land a plane on this island!”

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