Professional kitchen dealers are constantly on the hunt for good designers and installers to keep up with the strong demand. As a result, the average higher end kitchen project today may take nearly nine months from initial investigation - through the design, ordering, and installation phases - to completion. Indeed, in more ways than just the gestation period, creating a new kitchen is a lot like giving birth to a baby. You want an expert coach who cares a lot and who is there for you every step of the way …. including the times when you may feel pain. While friends no doubt will offer you their recommendations, here are six important criteria to help you select the best kitchen designer for you and your project.

1. Educational Approach. It is always a good idea to interview several candidates before you make a selection. Do it first in their place of business. You will get a sense of their professionalism and capabilities as well as the scope of their services and quality level of products offered.

Most importantly, how does each kitchen designer present himself? The best designers take an educational approach to the business of furnishing a new kitchen. Like parents having their first child and not knowing really what to expect, the best designers recognize that most customers will want objective information to make intelligent decisions for themselves. They will not only demonstrate a willingness to teach but a willingness to incorporate your ideas into the project. Their aim is to serve as a facilitator to help you weigh the pros and cons of virtually every product, design concept, design detail, and service that is considered for your kitchen project.

Moreover, the best designers have equipped their Showrooms or Studios to function as your educational center.

2. Design Process. The best designers are trained to thoroughly interview your project needs and desires. Many use detailed forms to document all the pertinent data so oversights are negligible. Ask to see how prospective designers intend to collect your project information and make a judgement of how comprehensive their form or process is.

Ask to see how they will develop preliminary conceptual plans for your project. The best designers should be able to show you at least one case history where they routinely develop 2-3 layouts to satisfy the client’s needs. Examine the breadth of solutions as well as the creativity. How well did each conceptual plan adhere to the age-old design principle of form following function? If the designer demonstrates a penchant for furnishing only one layout, perhaps they lack the flexibility and creativity your project warrants.

Also ask to see how they will help you arrive at an investment range for your project – based upon some preliminary product preferences and either an examination of your plans or the room to be remodeled. By all means, if you have a budget in mind, you should share it with a prospective kitchen designer. It’s the only way he will be able to engineer the greatest value within the dueling constraints of project preferences, space availability, and budget. But if you don’t have a budget established, the best designers will use a Cost Analysis System to interactively develop a budget range within 20-30 minutes that is quite accurate.

3. Experience. This is perhaps the single, most important factor in helping you achieve the greatest value from your kitchen project. That’s because kitchen products are only as good as the people who know them thoroughly, understand their applications, and have regularly ordered and installed them. Look for designers that have been with the same firm for a few years and have credentials to prove their expertise – like formal training, certification, design (not sales) awards, or magazine publication. Ask to see their portfolios to witness the range of work they have done. What’s great about experienced designers is that they are most capable of working with even a modest budget and a lesser cabinet quality grade to make a project look like a million dollars!

Additionally, seek Designers who are committed to continuing education. You want designers on your project that have received the latest training in product knowledge, appliance technologies, design techniques, state-of-the-art client services, and business practices. There is so much change going on in the industry, and kitchens are so complex, you certainly want your designer to be current. They should have training certificates from attending educational programs and trade shows during the most recent 12 months.

Generally speaking, you will find the most qualified designers at independent kitchen design firms. National home center and design center chains are notorious for high personnel turnover, which poses a serious risk when a kitchen can take nine months from an initial needs analysis to substantial completion. There is such an intimacy and multitude of detail with doing new kitchens you definitely want the same designer involved from beginning to end. Otherwise, your project is likely to be one long nightmare!

4. Organizational Skills. Speaking of detail, how well organized are your designer candidates? The best designers are excellent at time management - rarely are late for appointments – and demonstrate an uncanny ability to keep all of details of your project straight. They take voluminous project notes at each meeting and keep neat files on each client. Ask to see a typical file and gauge how well organized it is. Attention to detail is paramount at every phase of the kitchen development and installation process to ensure a successful project with few delays. The best designers actually maintain a complete 3 ring binder on each project with separate sections for the design development phase, contract documentation, installation phase, change orders, etc.

5. Support Staff Services. The best designers are backed up with additional staff that furnish critical support services such as CAD/drafting, materials ordering, and project management. Few successful designers can perform all of these necessary services well and still stay current with their workload. The extra attention to detail that these supporting services will deliver during the creative design development, ordering process, project management, or installation prevents mistakes, oversights, and delays. Most importantly, these support services afford the best designers to spend more time consulting with their clients. The net result is greater customer satisfaction during the development phase and greater enjoyment with the finished project, assuring you of a project as personal as your signature!

6. Personality. Nine months is a long time to work with one individual. You best find someone with whom you feel compatible. Someone you can trust. Someone who will provide reliable follow-up. Someone who won’t run away from a problem. Someone who is cheerful and quick at finding good solutions. In other words, you want an expert in kitchen design with great character. Like a doctor of design with a pleasing bedside manner. And, of course, the best way to confirm these qualities in someone is to check their most recent references. Ask for six names of clients whose projects were completed in the last 3-4 months. And then ask them lots of questions!

In conclusion, when it comes to a project as complicated and lengthy as a kitchen, selecting the one designer who combines an educational approach, a comprehensive design process, proven experience, great organizational skills, and support staff services with a compatible, pleasing personality is a sure bet. Your project is destined to be an outstanding success!