Kitchen & Bath Business - May/June 2020 - 26

SPECIAL SECTION

LEFT Miller's original project

scope was to ﬁnish a staircase
and handrail. Sharing some
of his ideas with his client motivated her into adding 12 more
rooms, including this home
oﬃce - a space that may grow
in popularity as the work-fromhome trend takes over. Photo
credit: Levi Miller Photography,
Brooklyn, N.Y.

BELOW In Dreith's outdoor

Functional Add-Ons

patio and kitchen addition, the
cabinets by Danver Stainless
Outdoor Kitchens include a
pullout trash bin and a Dekton
countertop with a waterfall
edge. She also included a Galley sink and faucet and added
a side burner and pizza oven.
Photo credit: Chipper Hatter,
Chipper Hatter Photography

Expanding the original kitchen or bath
project scope with purposeful spaces

DURING KBIS 2020, we were introduced to some "sister spaces" to the kitchen
and bath, including pet-washing and feeding stations and closets-turnedoffices. Adding beverage stations to the master suite was also a trend seen
at the show, although that has been growing in popularity over the years. In
light of most people needing to work from home because of the COVID-19
pandemic, home offices are most likely going to soar in popularity.
Sometimes these types of additions, which also include the tried-and-true
laundry and mudrooms, are part of the original scope of a project. In other
instances, they come about because of a designer's suggestion after seeing the
added potential an extra space can provide.
KBB spoke with several design pros to hear about their add-on anecdotes.

BIRDIE MILLER, DESIGNER-CRAFTSMAN,
STOCKTON, N.J.

I come up with ideas outside of the original project
scope that my clients will enjoy and benefit from.
Often,in conversation,they may say something that
inspires my suggestions. We are a very diversified
team, and our clients love that one company can
do it all. If your clients like working with you and
are pleased with the results, that makes them feel
comfortable enough to talk about other projects.
In one of my projects, I had originally quoted my
client to finish a staircase and handrail only.She was
impressed by our work and asked me to complete
her office and parlor room. She ended up adding
12 more rooms to the original scope, including the
kitchen, and I think it was because of the communication with and consideration we had for her. It
isn't always about the quality of your work; it is also
the quality of the relationship you have with your
client. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to make
sure I'm not dreaming that all happened.
CHRIS DREITH, CMKBD, HOME
IMPROVEMENTS GROUP, WOODLAND, CALIF.

By CHELSIE BUTLER

A lot of times, clients are locked into the way
things have always been done, and you have to
break them away from that mindset. I am asked to
add on to the original project all the time, but if it's
a really tight budget, we try not to get carried away.
If it is in the budget, I am not afraid of expanding
the scope if it allows me to supply the solutions to
my clients' needs.
While we were in the midst of a client's kitchen
design project, certain things kept coming up that
pertained to the exterior. The patio cover did not
protect the space adequately, so direct sun was

CHRISTINA MCMANAWAY, MCMANAWAY INTERIOR DESIGN,
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Clients often hint at future projects, so I will casually make suggestions since I
am already always thinking ahead and outside the box. Homeowners do tend
to phase things depending on their budget and to avoid having the whole
house torn up all at once. A lot of design decisions are made on site, so I try
to make sure I am at my projects as often as possible. My goal is to address
the architecture and style of the whole house, so my client knows I am open
to talking about other areas outside of the kitchen and baths.
In my most recent project, I was hired to remodel the kitchen, laundry
room and master bath. Although they were planning to do some of the secondary bathrooms and a closet on their own, once I had presented the two
schematic design options per room and worked with my clients through the
finalization of their design, I was handed the rest of the work to complete.
From the start of every project, I tell my clients that I bill consultations
hourly to allow them to discuss areas outside the initial scope of work, as well
as issues as they come up. We often will walk around one area of the home to
in the initial scope and then into another area that is not. That usually leads
to the question,"Would you like me to create a rendering or floor plan layout
for this room as well?"

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Kitchen & Bath Business - May/June 2020

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