If there’s one thing all people can agree upon, it’s that things in life don’t always go as planned.  Two and a half years ago, Kitchen Doctors did a custom Cabinet Reface job that included granite counter tops, and a new ceramic tile floor.  A beautiful like-new kitchen!  Everything went well, and our customer was very happy with the work!  Then, two years later, we received a call from that customer.

Apparently there were some problems with the floor…the grout was breaking out in places, and some tiles were coming loose.  I called our installer, and asked him to take a look at the job to see what was going on, and what needed to be done.  He made the appointment with our customer…but never showed. Then, he refused to circle back, or take any responsibility for the original work.  Needless to say, this put Kitchen Doctors in a difficult place…but it also gave us an opportunity.

There was never a moment that we attempted to defer responsibility…we were going to fix this customer’s floor no matter what.  Ultimately, we determined it needed to be replaced entirely, along with the sub floor…all at our cost.  At this time, it brought to my mind, the owner of Kitchen Doctors, why some people choose to use the big box stores or large companies for home improvement work.  Even though they pay more, they feel comfortable that if things go poorly, the big companies will ultimately get things done correctly, while a small local business might duck responsibility…like our installer had with us.  As a local business owner, this is a sentiment we face regularly.  We can SAY we’ll take care of it, but doesn’t everyone SAY that?

I’m happy to say that many small businesses DO take their work and warranty seriously, as we did with this customer.  We replaced the floor at no charge to them, and made the situation right.  Yes, it was an unfortunate situation for all involved, but something to learn from, and an opportunity to put our money where our word is…and we did!

I didn’t share this story to brag, but simply to let people know that sometimes you find a small company that will do it’s best, and will do the right thing.  And this unfortunate opportunity gave Kitchen Doctors the chance to prove it.

James J. Sheehan

Owner of Kitchen Doctors

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