Today we’d like to introduce you to Pamela Coslet.
Pamela, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
We founded our company in 2009 just as the housing market was receding. We introduced a professional mini kitchen makeover that was affordable yet had the look of luxury. We were able to achieve this by enhancing our client’s existing kitchen by either painting their cabinets or adding newly painted cabinet fronts. As the economy grew, our clients were asking for more advanced products and services. We added multiple new cabinet lines and many other beautiful product offerings such as Quartz, Granite, Hardware, Custom Hoods and Cabinet Trim. We found the most talented designers to join our team and then, by happenstance, we found the perfect location in Geneva for a Design Showroom. We held our grand opening in September of 2016.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It hasn’t always been a smooth road. First, we found that as the economy grew, so did the style and tastes of our clients. You see, at least in our area, traditional styling was popular and we had a staff of highly talented cabinet finishers that specialized in Old World finishes such as glazing, rub through and distressing. Within the past few years, the style clients are pursuing has moved more to a transitional type that includes cooler colors, simpler cabinet styles such as Shaker and cleaner colors and lines. The Old World finishes that we were known for us not as popular and as a result, our mini makeover business started to wane. Unfortunately, we had to layoff some of our employees.
We had the foresight to change our business model in 2015 to new cabinetry and design-build and as a result, we needed to attract a client base that wanted new cabinets. We’ve been quite successful and have increased our revenue year over year from 2016 to 2017. We still offer cabinet painting and we do it with subcontractors versus in-house finishers.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Vineyard Chic – what should we know?
We are a Kitchen and Bath Design, Build and Remodeling Company. We are known for our beautiful designs and quality craftsmanship. We offer everything from mini makeovers to full kitchen and bath remodels. What sets us apart is that we are a family run company and we offer customization that other cabinet companies are unable to do. For example, we can design a kitchen economically with semi-custom cabinetry yet we can build a custom hood or island.
Once, we were delivering some cabinets to a client and the strap broke on the back of the truck and all of the cabinets flew out. Normally, a cabinet company would have had to reorder the cabinets which sometimes could take 4-6 weeks. Because we are woodworkers and cabinet finishers, we were able to take the cabinets back to our shop, rebuild them and finish them to match. We had them in our client’s home the next day!
Any shoutouts? Who else deserves credit in this story – who has played a meaningful role?
My husband, Bill Coslet is the creative force of the company. He is a talented designer and he has helped our team create eye dropping kitchens. For example, he just built a custom hood for a client with a barn wood center that is removable and can be changed to a different style anytime. He built a stage in our lower level so our Grandkids can bring their friends over to listen to bands or magicians which we’ve done many times for their Birthday parties. He just designed a kitchen where he added a few inches to the upper cabinet depth so there is more room to store dishes.
My daughter, Krystin Strasser opened a branch of Vineyard Chic in her hometown of Madison Wisconsin. She is a talented designer and tells me she is working in her dream job.
We also have a client, Tracy Kabeshita that hired us to complete her kitchen makeover a few years ago. She has become a great friend and is also our biggest cheerleader. We have an employee, Amy Sneed that hired us to do her kitchen in 2012 and the next year came to work for us and has been here ever since. Amy is very well known in our community and has brought many clients into us over the years.
Contact Info:
- Address: 211 James Street
Unit C - Website: www.vineyardchic.com
- Phone: 630-464-1334
- Email: pam@vineyardchic.com
- Instagram: pcoslet
- Facebook: Vineyard Chic
Image Credit:
Chrissy Barrett
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