I hired Kalamazoo Custom Kitchens for a full kitchen remodel and, after nine months, I've ended the relationship and am bringing in new contractors to finish the job. Anyone considering KCK should know what they're walking into. I'll also say up front: if you've already used this company, go back and verify the work was actually done correctly, because in our experience it often wasn't.
The project was quoted at six to eight weeks. We're now at nine months and still don't have all the trim, cabinet inserts, and pieces installed to call it done. The delays alone I could have lived with, since construction runs long and I get that. What I can't excuse is the deception and the total lack of project management.
I was lied to repeatedly about timelines and about which materials were actually on hand and ordered. There was effectively zero project management. I was expected to relay every detail directly to the contractor myself and to inspect the work daily to catch problems. I literally had to climb into our attic to confirm work was done right, and it wasn't. More than once, when I pointed out something done wrong, the response was some version of "yeah, I noticed that too, but you didn't say anything, so I figured it was fine." That's backwards. Do the job right the first time.
The workmanship was the worst part. The subcontractor (Van Dyke) installed our engineered wood floor by gluing only the outside edges of seven-inch planks with standard wood glue and construction adhesive, leaving gaps throughout. They cut the planks around the fireplace instead of undercutting the brick. The entire floor, kitchen through living room, had to be torn out and reinstalled properly. I was fortunate that my uncle did flooring for 30 years and could confirm just how wrong the original install was. On top of that, I was charged what worked out to roughly seven times the standard rate for that flooring work. Kyle was fine with it. Either he didn't recognize a fair price or didn't care to fight for one. Either way, it wasn't good for me as the customer, and fighting for fair pricing is something I expected from him.
We went months without electricity in the kitchen. Rather than bring in an HVAC professional, the tile installer was asked to mount our range hood vent and exhaust though the roof. It was done improperly, eventually pulled away from the roof, and the roof leaked water into our ceiling, causing damage that then had to be repaired. When an actual HVAC contractor was finally brought in to fix the two previous failed attempts (the second attempt by Kyle's retired dad), he asked what eight year old had done the work. The ceiling repair and re-stamping still don't look right.
The list of things I had to chase down or do myself goes on. I had to ask numerous times for work to be redone, from second coats of paint to cutting the floor trim down to match the rest of the house. The floor and cabinet trim still doesn't look great and need to be redone. I installed all the cabinet handles myself, did the cleanup myself, and still need to adjust the cabinet doors so they hang right. Our floating shelves are uneven. My garage was used as a dumping ground and workshop for weeks until I complained, leaving the whole space covered in sawdust (multiple times).
To be fair, the design and layout were done well, and everyone I dealt with was polite and willing to redo work when I pushed. But "nice" doesn't finish a kitchen. My honest read is that any positive reviews you see for KCK were from before Kyle took over, because this is not the same company. Do not expect quality work, timely work, or that Kyle will look out for your best interests. I genuinely cannot recommend them. read more
