THE COLLEY'S GRAND DESIGN

At the end of 2011, Ian was invited to the home of Lynda and Rob Colley in Milton Keynes, who were exploring the possibility of having a kitchen refurbishment.  I now know I should have packed him off with sandwiches, as Lynda and Rob didn't just want a refurbishment - oh no - they wanted a Grand Design, and nothing less.



The kitchen is clearly Lynda's realm and domain and  Ian loved the level of creativity and involvement he shared with Lynda, as it gave him an insight into what was really wanted and needed from their space: we're all about asking what you'd like, rather than telling you what you can have.

Lynda and Rob's patio doors are directly opposite a doorway leading into their lounge, with the former dining room in between.  Lynda's vision was to widen both the patio and living room doors and install bi-fold doors that would open right back, to create one huge inside-to-outside space.

Lynda loves to cook and bake and create gorgeous little chocolately thingys that linger forever on the hips!  However Lynda is not the tallest chocolateer and finds working at conventional worktop height uncomfortable; so Ian designed this central seating and working area.

The Colley Grand Design took approximately eight weeks to complete, but the results were worth waiting for.  From widening the patio door and lounge door recesses, to replacing ceilings and plastering walls. There was miles of new electrical wiring and Building Control liaison/certification to ensure. Obviously there was the kitchen installation itself, complete with all the appliances, wirework, recycling and storage solutions, in addition to the plumbing and decoration work. Rob requested a bespoke Sky box housing, whilst Lynda requested a purpose built, fully co-ordinated dog bed for the VIP's (i.e.: her dogs!).  This was all done with the endless laughs, generous refreshments (and cake!) and tireless patience of Lynda and Rob Colley - we had a blast, thank you, and we're so glad you like it.

On Sunday 22 April 2012, Lynda posted the following on her Facebook wall:

Ian's dedication and pride in his work is second to none.  He was here until seven last night tinkering, just wanting to make sure every little detail was "just so".  It is.  It is GORGEOUS.  We both love it, it's a total joy just to stand in the kitchen/Deck Room and admire the completed project - which I have to say just grew and grew from a new kitchen to walls coming down, ceilings being skimmed, renovations moved to the lounge too.  So practically the whole of our downstairs has had the Ian Dennis touch.  Thank you Ian (and Karan for her patience and enthusiasm).

And finally there there was this, a beautiful hardbook photobook, stuffed full of gorgeous glossy photos of Lynda and Rob's kitchen and Deck Room, by way of thank you for our contribution.  This, quite simply, is the best testimonial we have ever received, and by far the most generous, by every definition of the word.

HOTPOINT CUSTOMER SERVICE

Well, who'd have thunk it?  Our (not cheap!) 24 month-old Hotpoint WDD960 washer dryer decided to die in its sleep the weekend before we were due to take a family holiday.  This is the stuff of nightmares; well, my nightmares at least.  We have an 8 year-old daughter who chooses to change her attire several times a day, and a 3 year-old son who has to change his attire several times a day!  How do little boys get that dirty so quickly?!  Answers on a postcard please.

You can now understand how I might be horrified at the prospect of lugging car fulls of laundry to friends, relatives and laundrettes all across Northamptonshire, or even worse....[dramatic pause]....hand washing it all.  Makes you shudder, doesn't it?  I need not have worried.  Whilst Ian activated and deployed his Mum in the first instance, I contacted the Hotpoint Customer Service team and reported the fault.  Whilst they couldn't get an engineer out to us before we went on holiday (because this isn't a fairy story!), they did bend over backwards to have an engineer attend the fault on the day after we got home. 

We were advised an engineer would visit between 12 noon and 6pm, but he would phone two hours prior to his estimated arrival, so we didn't have to sit at home contemplating the fluff in our navels for the entire time.  My inside voice said "...yeah, right!" at this point, as I continued to pile laundry bags into the fleet of waiting Stobart lorries; but I was pleasantly surprised.  Whilst on holiday I had a text to confirm the engineer's visit.  On the day of the scheduled repair we got another text to confirm the engineer's imminence and then we actually got the call.  The engineer phoned to confirm he'd be with us at 12 noon - and he was!

The rest all gets a bit technical for me, apparently we had a faulty PCB-mumble-mumble-whatsit-thingy, but it was all replaced, repaired and working within 20 minutes; now you can't say fairer than that can you?  It was one of the happiest days of my life.  I need to get out more.

So, it gives me enormous pleasure - and relief - to be able to personally recommend the excellent after sales customer service we received from Hotpoint, which is handy given that we sell a gazillion of their products every year.  It could so easily have got awkward, but it didn't.

There now follows a couple of bleeding obvious Handing Hints:

1) Fill in your warranty registration forms (either written or online) before you fully install your appliance, because you can bet - as sure as God made little green apples - that the serial number you're really, really going to need is right at the back and right at the bottom of your dead (built-in) appliance.  With a little forward planning you can save yourself the time, agony and expense of visiting the Chiropractor, straight after a fault report.

2) Kicking, praying, swearing at or pleading with a faulty washer dryer doesn't make it start working again.  This is true of dishwashers and most other essential electrical equipment in my experience.  Sad, but true. 

3) Always - ALWAYS - complete your warranty registration cards, and either post or submit them online immediately, else you'll forget - and you know you will.

RISE OF THE INDEPENDENT RETAILERS

Mary Portas - champion of the local independent retailer, broadcaster and general marketing guru - tweeted this this morning...

"To all Indie shops. The future has to be built on superb customer service, specialism and a great shopping experience. Embrace retail."

As usual, Mary's timing is perfect as Moben Kitchens, Kitchens Direct, Dolphin Bathrooms and Sharps Bedrooms are all reportedly going into administration.  This comes as no surprise to Ian and I, as we have had more than our fair share of experience with these companies, which contributed to how IKD came to be.  We believed - way back in 1992 - that there was a huge gap in the market for individual, personalised customer service built on trust, respect, honest pricing and a killer after sales service.  We were horrified with the glamorous sales promises, cheap over-priced products and dreadful, non-existent after sales care.

Of course the "sheds" (i.e.: B&Q, Wickes, Moben, Dolphin etc) left us standing in terms of showroom square footage, staffing and national advertising, but we continued to plug away, relentlessly building something solid on rock, rather than on the shifting sands of endless false promises. 

In our experience, and from the experiences of our many - many - disgruntled ex-shed conversions, the sheds threw money at advertising, but not on the customer's sales and service experience, or - unforgivably -  the end product.  This was never sustainable. 

We're also aware that high pressure sales were a common tactic, which again, offers only a short term gain at best.  With high pressure sales, you may hector the business from the customer this time, but follow that up with poor sales, service and products, and do you suppose they're ever going to come back to you?  Do you suppose they're ever going to recommend you you to anyone else?  No, in fact they're going to slowly destroy your reputation by telling their friends and family about their bad experiences and the poor value for money they received.  There's an old, old adage that says: a satisfied customer will tell 5 people that they're happy, but a dissatisfied customer will tell 15 that they're unhappy!

Repeat business and recommendations from elated customers has been a significant factor in how IKD has been able to thrive through the leaner times.  Don't get me wrong, we're still unable (and unwilling) to compete on the showroom square footage front, and we remain a small local independent retailer, but - dammit - you will receive no greater personalised service from anywhere else. 

We're small and mighty, like the atom! 

We fully support Mary Portas' campaign to help local independent firms thrive; after all, small businesses are the backbone of this country and the economy.  Personalised service, specialism and great customer experiences should always have been the way of the world, but now the sheds are dying one by one (and taking their automated service, manned by their cheap, inexperienced and disengaged workforce with them), I believe we have a great opportunity to see the rise - and rise - of the independents.

INTEGRATED DISHWASHER SALE!

We have a couple of amazing dishwashers on very special offer at the moment, but it's whilst stocks last, so if you want one, you best call Karan on (01536) 415280 to reserve yours now.  Ready?  Here goes...

This superb 60cm integrated dishwasher from Rangemaster offers 12 place settings and 7 wash programmes. It has an efficiency rating of AAA for energy, wash performance and drying and has a 52 decibel noise level. This unit is designed to be completely hidden behind a furniture door and will require a cold water feed and a waste outlet.

Here's the summary of goodies:

12 place settings, 7 programmes, Quick wash programme, Delicate programme, Pre-rinse, LED control panel, Time remaining indicator, Delay timer, Rinse aid indicator, Salt level indicator, Height adjustable top basket, Cutlery basket, Adjustable racking, Anti-food devices, Noise level 52 dB, Energy consumption 1.05 Kwh, Water consumption 15 litres, Energy rating A, Wash performance A, Drying performance A, Dimensions: H820 x W600 x D580mm

Normal RRP: £452, but your exclusive IKD Special Offer Price is just £225!

Or, if that's too big, how about this little beauty...

This super fantastic 45cm integrated dishwasher from Rangemaster offers 9 place settings and 6 wash programmes. It has an efficiency rating of AAA for energy, wash performance and drying and has a 54 decibel noise level. This unit is designed to be completely hidden behind a furniture door and will require a cold water feed and a waste outlet.

Here's a list of the goodies:

9 place settings, 6 programmes, Quick wash programme, Delicate programme, Pre-rinse, LED control panel, Time remaining indicator, Delay timer, Rinse aid indicator, Salt level indicator, Height adjustable top basket, Cutlery basket, Adjustable racking, Anti-food device, Noise level 54 dB, Energy consumption 0.8 Kwh, Water consumption 15 litres, Energy rating A, Wash performance A, Drying performance A, Dimensions: H820 x W450 x D580mm

Normal RRP: £401.52, but your exclusive IKD Special Offer Price is just £199!

All prices include VAT, but exclude delivery and installation.  All products subject to availability - stocks are limited, so get your socks on if you want one!

Call Karan on (01536) 415280 right now!

WHAT MAKES 100%?

My friend Jon, emailed this to me this morning and I thought it would make you smile too...

What makes 100%?  What does it mean to give MORE than 100%?  Ever wonder about those people who say they are giving more than 100%?  Have you ever been asked to give more than 100%?  How about achieving 103%?  What makes up 100% in life?

Here's a little mathmathical formula that may help you answer these questions: If

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z is representated as

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 & 26, then...

H-A-R-D-W-O-R-K

8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98%

K-N-O-W-L-E-D-G-E

11+14+15+23+12+5+4+7+5 = 96%

A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E

1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100%

B-U-L-L-S-H-I-T

2+21+12+12+19+8+9+20 = 103%

...and look how far ass kissing will take you...

A-S-S-K-I-S-S-I-N-G

1+19+19+11+9+19+19+9+14+7 = 118%

So we can conclude with mathematical certainty, that whilst HARDWORK and KNOWLEDGE will get you close, and ATTITUDE will get you there - it's BULLSHIT and ASS KISSING that'll take you over the top!

At least we now know why some people are where they are!

S-BOX: THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX

The S-Box™ is a revolutionary new concept for the kitchen and the home.

Simple to operate and cleverly creating new space in the surface of any worktop or cabinet, the S-Box™ collection provides a range of useful items that can be hidden from view, and presented only when needed with the touch of a finger.

No electrics, no gas struts… no hassle!



S-Box: Key Box Top & Collar - Stainless Steel £280



 

S-Box: Knife Box Top & Collar (excl. knives) - Stainless Steel £304



S-Box: Power Box (3 Sockets) Top & Collar - Stainless Steel £265

 

 

S-Box: iPod Dock Box Top & Collar (excl. iPod) - Stainless Steel £345



S-Box: Power Box (2 Sockets + 2 USB) Top & Collar - Stainless Steel £305

S-Box: Spice Box Top & Collar (incls Jars) - Stainless Steel £280

  

This first S-Box™ range is a practical and stylish way to increase the storage space in your Kitchen and with a carefully selected range of products and contents to suit every taste, enables your kitchen to look clean, clutter-free and well presented.

Maximising otherwise wasted space towards the rear of the cabinet or within the voids in a kitchen island, S-Boxes™ can be easily installed and add value and innovation to any kitchen design.

Described as the most innovative development the kitchen market has seen since the soft-close drawer, the S-Box™ is set to become the next must-have accessory in every household and it's available with an IKD Kitchens' kitchen refurbishment - just ask during your free no obligation home design consultation with Ian.

Prices include VAT, but exclude delivery or installation.