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BATHROOM HOME . CONTACT ME . FREE BATHROOM DESIGN TOOL . MY BATHROOM PORTFOLIO . WEBSITE BATHROOM PHOTOS |
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.jpg "Modern Bathroom Design With Shower Bath") |
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It is mostly free !!
Not that I believe that a good professional bathroom design service should be free in an ideal world. It is almost impossible to know who you are getting when you have your bathroom designed. Because professionals and amateurs are lumped together and indistinguishable without digging deeply, it is difficult for the professional designers to compete by charging for a better service, in a market place where it is presumed that bathroom designing is free . The tab is mostly picked up by the company tendering for your business, so if they provide you with a good professional design service, be nice to them ! An average design will have cost them at least £100 in time and labour to produce (most bespoke schemes at least £400). It is very easy to take this for granted. On the basis they get at least 1 in 3 bathrooms then that is a cost of at least £300 for every bathroom that they do, so try to make their job easier !
If your local kitchen centre asks a few probing questions before coming out to see you, ie have you seen their showroom ? and will both of you be at the meeting etc ? it is an attempt to reduce this bill, by targeting genuine enquiries. It may be a surprise to you, how often this free service is abused.
How do our bathroom designers stack up ?
I believe, on a good day, if you go to a small local family run bathroom showroom, you will get an excellent level of service. Be under no illusion that this means they offer a professional design service the way I understand it . Most bathroom designers are self-taught and capable to a good level. It is possible to get by with most schemes on this basis, and for many people this is fine. But there are occasions when this level of bathroom design is not enough.
I believe that the more you devote to the budget, and the more you care, the more important this design ability gap becomes. Having said that, there are some very small schemes, with awkward ground plans, where I have provided unique solutions, on tight budgets, to get the business.
It is an area of amusement to me when small, one designer, companies have used my services, to see how different they are from me in approach and design results. I have had few complaints when customers compare these results, so it is important to understand the role of professional designers in the bathroom industry.
Larger bathroom companies and their approach
I mentioned earlier the fact that you can quite often get the best service from local small scale companies. I believe it is up to you to ask enough questions, when looking for a good design service and products. I have seen good small companies expand and lose sight of the importance of their customers. It becomes harder to seperate focus on profit, from providing a well rounded customer service. Do they recommend that better shower enclosure at lower profit to improve their reputation with customers ? Or go for the easy sell, with lower quality, because they have a bank manager on their back ? A large overdraft has spoilt some good people I have known over the years.
Larger bathroom companies have lost my vote, more and more, over the years, and mostly it is because they become more motivated by the sales pitch and not the quality and design. The approach often seems to be, to keep things simple and sell hard, so professional designers do not fit into this type of mentality. It is no surprise that I have not worked for this type of set-up for very long, and the bathroom industry is full of this type of company . If the designer plays an active part in the whole process from bathroom design to installation and has direct involvement with the trade people, then he or she cannot hide from a bad design !! If they work full-time from a local showroom, they cannot hide from their responsibilities, if you wish to speak to them, when things go wrong!
Larger bathroom companies, often after the design process, actively keep designers away from the customer, because they know it costs them more money if the designer is involved in an installation. If they change your bathroom design to save money, it is easier if they get an installation manager to say that the designer agreed to lose that special order unit, so that they can fit the bathroom on-time, when really they forgot to order it !! Also you are more inclined to agree with them, if you have no designer to-hand to back you up.
When you get to the scale of the sheds and direct sales companies then the design skills degenerate further, and the installation, which is farmed out to sub- contract trades, becomes more important to look into.
I have recently worked with a company that provided sub- contract labour to a local national shed and was appalled by the total lack of experience from design through ordering to installation.The installation charges were also nearly double that of your average local company. So look locally if you have a choice of companies and start small.
Conclusions
my online design service linkStart at your local small bathroom company, ask lots of questions about their type of design service, ask to see examples of their work, and ask them to explain their reasons for their designs. Have they any recommendations, or jobs completed for people you know?
Unfortunately A smart showroom is not always everything, and can sometimes be a front to a direct sales organisation, so be wary. I will cover this later.
Getting more than one company to design your bathroom for comparison is always wise, but be careful not to be confused by too many opinions and opinions.
Friends and family will always have an opinion, and quite often confuse you with the best intentions. It is better to employ a designer you can relate to, and confide in, and stear clear of too much exterior influence. Quite often your friends advise is motivated by jealousy and self interest, and not have your best interests at heart.
Lastly I am always happy to discuss your scheme and provide a professional design service at whatever stage you are at.
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Diy Conservatory Shop |
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I have provided a link here to my online retail diy upvc conservatory website for superb Conservatories, Orangeries, Porches, Roofs, Garden Offices and Garden Rooms at low prices : Please click on the photo above for great deals and your free quotation and design |
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