Industry experts Stuart Elfland, president of Metropolitan, and Steve Sheinkopf, CEO of Yale Appliance, teamed up for a live webinar to discuss “How to Plan Ahead for a Successful Kitchen Remodel”. Below are some highlights from the conversation, and you can view the entire webinar recording here.

1. Being your own contractor is difficult

• You need to hire a contractor in the beginning
• The contractor can tell you what your space is capable of and what can and can’t be feasible
• The contractor will give you a time frame of how long the project will take
• The contractor will hire and coordinate all the subs
• Insider tip: If there’s another room in the house you want to remodel, you should do it with the kitchen since you will have all the subs on site already A powder room or a laundry room require all the same subs as a kitchen project, so it’s efficient to do other rooms your’re thinking of renovating with the kitchen.

 

2. Setting a budget is the most important step when beginning a project

• Stuart recommends you make an “A List” and a “B List”
• In the “A List” you get everything you want. If the “A List” is too much money, you go to the “B List”
• You don’t want to say in the middle of the project “how did this become so expensive”
• You should treat the kitchen project like and job and think about how to be successful at it

 

3. The Value of a Kitchen Designer

• A good designer is important to make sure the project goes well
• Listens to your wish list
• Plans around your budget
• Explains the different cabinet and countertop options

4. You need to explain your lifestyle

• It’s important to be specific about your daily habits and family living
• Describe your cooking style
• Identify storage priorities, such as places for cooking utensils, including pots and pans, baking sheets, china, etc.
• Identify your preferences around having small appliances seen on the counters vs hidden within cabinets

 

5. Choose Appliances First

• You need to choose the appliances in the beginning of the project
• It impacts the whole design of the kitchen
• Don’t have preconceived notions about the appliances you think you want – go in open minded
• The great thing about Yale Appliance is they have 3 wonderful showrooms of what’s available

 

If you want to know more about how to get started and “How to Plan Ahead for a Successful Kitchen Remodel”, contact us!