Replies

1. 
   GregoryPaolini | Jun 08, 2009 02:15pm | #1

   I'm not familiar with that particular place, but that seems to be the status quo.  Look how many box stores offer you a 10x10 dream kitchen for $3000 - You get what you pay for. 

2. 
   Dave45 | Jun 08, 2009 04:29pm | #2

   Kitchens are tough! As much as we wish it weren't so, there are really only so many ways to design them and the high volume suppliers have pretty much covered those bases.

   Giving the devil his due, a customer can usually get 90% of their "dream kitchen" by mixing and matching modules in a Home Depot store. When they discover that I'll charge 3-4 times the HD price for a custom kitchen, they often decide that they can live with the 10% they don't really like very much.

   The "quality" argument is often fairly weak, too. Kitchens really aren't "heirloom" furniture, and with reasonable care even a HD kitchen will hold up for several years. By that time, most homeowners will; (a) have moved, (b) be ready to remodel and get the latest style, color, etc, or (c) learn to live with the small annoyances.

   My bottom line is that I don't even try to compete on price. When I set up the first meeting with a prospective customer, I ask them to have some pictures of what they like. About half the time, they show me a HD catalog, and I give them my 10 minute pitch which includes the "quality" issue, my ability to make maximum use of their space without filler panels, my ability to include their specific "touches", etc. Then, I drop the price bomb.

   Most of the time, that pretty much ends the meeting although a few want to keep talking. Oddly enough, a few of the dropouts get their kitchen from HD, but call me back for something else that they want but can't find.

   
   

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   Edited 6/8/2009 9:45 am by Dave45