Case Study: Prestons Kitchens

With more than 25-years’ experience designing kitchens between its nine staff members, customers can be sure they’re in good hands at Prestons Kitchens. The company, founded by Mark Parker in 2016, has showrooms in Leeds, Preston, Huddersfield and Stockport, and supplies high-quality contemporary German and Classic English kitchens. In 2019 Ozga came on board as designer and product consultant and has thrived in her role. In this case study, she takes us through her design that won the Compusoft Spring Design Competition.

What was the brief for the design that won the competition?

The kitchen I designed was to be a combination of cooking, dining and living zones all in one open-plan space. It is to become the heart of the house. A place where people gather and spend most of their time; somewhere they not only cook and eat but also work, watch TV, read the newspaper, help kids with their homework, hang-out with friends and sip a glass of wine after a long day.

Tell us more about your design process and why you made the decisions you did with this project?

The most important thing is to get to know the client well and ask them the right questions. Not just the basic ones, like: “What cabinet style do you want?” or “What finish do you want for your countertop?”. Deeper questions that get to the root of why they are renovating make all the difference. These might be: “Why have you decided to renovate your kitchen?”, “If money were no object, what would your new kitchen include?”, “Besides cooking, what other daily activities do you like to do in the kitchen?”, “Do you like to entertain?”, “What does the rest of your home look like?” Every customer is different, everyone expects something different. Each client must be approached individually. It was a pleasure for me to design such a fantastically large space, as it had so much scope for being multi-functional.

What do you like about Winner Design?

Winner Design has a large range of décor items and high-quality renders are great for creating realistic and enticing kitchen designs. There is a good amount of detail and plenty of technical drawings available within appliance catalogues, which makes selecting appliances a lot easier. Regular updates keep improving its features.

What tips do you have for other designers looking to create a kitchen for entertaining and keen cooks?

Step one should always be to understand how the kitchen is going to be used. This is a basic approach that any designer must take. A kitchen can’t be just a leftover space, or a space to be defined at the end of a project. Designers must understand that a kitchen has various flows and different work areas that need to be integrated throughout the entire project. Beyond the style or design requested by the client, it’s essential to be aware of the budget. I would never start a kitchen design without knowing what the client wants to spend. With so many options available today it would be tricky to design a project and hope that it miraculously meets the figure the client has in mind. I know that money is always a difficult thing to discuss with prospects or clients, but it is important to consider finances at the beginning to ensure that you provide the best possible solutions.

How did you get into kitchen design?

My interest in design was sparked when I started researching my own perfect kitchen. This motivated me to browse for inspiration and read up on all the tips and tricks of the trade. I was so invested in the project that I went to a design kitchen course. That was the lightbulb moment when I noticed how much pleasure designing gives me and that I would thrive on creating beautiful designs for others. The design programs are a dream to use. Before I would sketch out my designs in pencil, but now that I’m trained, I love that Winner can bring my ideas to life.  This creative expression is what was missing from the customer-facing jobs I’d had before. Luckily, Prestons Kitchens saw potential in me and the next thing I knew I was on the shop floor ready to meet real clients with real spaces to transform.

Why would you recommend Winner Design?

The catalogues offer a wealth of key information that is of great use when clients are picking out appliances etc. This helps to create confidence in the consumer which is vital in sales. There are plenty of settings and options that can be fine tuned to ensure the software works perfectly for the product you are promoting.