Helen Sharritt’s goal is to make remodeling your kitchen or bath a stress-free experience.
They said it couldn’t be done. But that didn’t stop Helen Sharritt from creating a system that would change the pace of kitchen and bathroom remodeling entirely. As owner of Helen Sharritt Interiors (HSI), Sharritt has first-hand experience with the time even a simple remodeling job can take. After years of hearing the frustration expressed by her clients, Sharritt took action. The result is a system that speeds up a remodel to three weeks instead of three to six months. Welcome to Rapid Remodel.
Sharritt established HSI in 1985 and now has practices in both Chicago and the Bay Area. She became a Sonoma County resident in 2001, when her late husband took a job in Petaluma, and the bulk of her business is now in California. This year, she’s focusing on rolling out her Rapid Remodel system.
With a graduate degree in interior design from the New York School of Interior Design, Sharritt strives to create a personalized home environment for her clients. Her goal is to make designing, remodeling or new construction a breeze. “No horror stories. You’ll get a seamless experience from beginning to end,” she says.
Early on in her career, Sharritt recognized that home or business owners were sometimes hesitant to use the expertise of an interior designer during a remodel because they thought it would add expense. But that’s simply not true, she says. Sharritt also realized if she could shorten the time these projects typically took, it would help cut expenses and reduce frustrations. Further, she believed potential clients would see the value of working with a designer who could help facilitate the entire process.
One problem area she identified in a traditional remodel was the downtime (meaning the days the project area was unusable), which created a lot of inconvenience—something she considered an unnecessary expense. For example, if a kitchen is being remodeled, the downtime usually includes having to go out for meals, which, depending on the timeframe, could add up to thousands of dollars over the course of a traditional remodel. During a more extensive remodel, a family also might have to stay with friends or family or set up residency in a hotel. These additional expenses and inconveniences add to the frustrations for everyone involved. “When I moved to California, I saw the construction culture here was more laid back [than I was used to]. The norm was for contractors to be working on several projects at a time—a couple hours here, a couple there. Some days, no one would show up at all, thus dragging projects out insanely.”
Working together
In spite of hearing from contractors and other interior designers that her idea wouldn’t work, she persisted. More than a decade ago, she teamed with Maureen Pape, who was then manager of Sonoma Kitchen and Bath; she’s now kitchen and bath division manager for Hudson Street Design with more than 20 years’ experience in the building trades and expertise in the construction and design arena.
Hudson Street Design, a division of HLC Incorporated (with locations in Healdsburg, San Rafael and Gualala), has always been a timesaver for Sharritt because its multiple showrooms make it easy for her to meet with and consult clients throughout the North Bay. For her part, Pape welcomed the idea of working with Sharritt, because she sees the designer as a “grounded individual with lots of energy, who possess a great business sense and loves to see the transformation she helps create for her clients.” Both saw how they complemented one another: Sharritt had the interior design experience and Pape could connect her with in-house designers for help with spacing needs and overseeing individual projects.
Sharritt began talking with Pape about ways to speed up the remodeling process. “I ran things by Maureen because of her wealth of experience and because she was seeing the potential from the other side,” says Sharritt. “I was seeing the process from the standpoint of the client and designer, and Maureen could see the challenges from the standpoint of the cabinet dealer—and also how critical it was for kitchen and bath designers to stay on top of their orders to prevent delays.” They started by considering what it really takes to do a successful remodel and began troubleshooting the process. It took Sharritt three years to develop the Rapid Remodel process.
From their own experience, Sharritt and Pape knew that getting all the necessary materials and coordinating all the construction partners’ individual timelines with clients’ needs was essential. They also realized that one way to save time and energy was to gather and inspect everything that was needed prior to even beginning a construction job.
So the first step became doing considerable upfront planning, with no rush to get the job started until it was all planned out (the three-week promise refers to construction time only). The second important ingredient was to have manufacturers and crews that understood the Rapid Remodel process and were committed to its success. “I’ve trained three contractors and their crews in this process,” says Sharritt. “Not just any contractor can do this. It’s a tightly choreographed process with a timeline that cannot be deviated from and requires the entire team’s commitment.”
Feedback
“Amazing!! What more can I say? It’s everything I hoped for and more. Working with [Sharritt] not only made things easy, but also fun. And all in three weeks! Everyone told me we couldn’t do it, but we sure fooled them!” writes Mark Auerbach of Petaluma on Sharritt’s website. According to Sharritt, this project included a kitchen and fireplace as well as removing a wall. “The job was bigger than anticipated and Auerbach himself was surprised that even with adding extra electrical components and the fireplace, I was still able to meet the three-week deadline,” says Sharritt.
Another example of what happens for a client is explained from this website quote: “As a bachelor moving into a new place, I found Helen’s advice invaluable. Her shepherding me through the process was delightful. First, she came and took a look at the furnishings I had and the style that I liked. Then when she advised me about everything—from paint to carpeting to appliances—it all blended together. She’s masterful in her ability to understand what I liked and then translate it into all the decisions that go into decor. With her help and contacts, I closed on my home on a Friday and within a week the entire house was repainted, carpeted and the new appliances were installed. I moved in the following Saturday. Having Helen help me through this process was a gift that I gave myself, and now I’m reaping the benefits every day I look around my new home,” says Bill E. of Novato.
Custom made sustainability
Choosing a rapid remodel doesn’t mean you’ll have only limited choices of material—quite the opposite. Everything is custom. And because of her years of experience and her design network, Sharritt has developed relationships with numerous vendors, which translates to discounts she can pass on to her clients (which can help offset the cost of her design services).
And though most cabinets used in the United States come from the East Coast or Canada, Sharritt believes in using California-based cabinet companies, because working with in-state vendors cuts down on transport emissions and helps support the local economy. One of her favorite places for these products is Sequoia Custom Cabinetry in Sanger, Calif., which is near Fresno, because if there’s a problem, it’s close enough to get a replacement or repair more quickly.
Ted Johnson, marketing and sales manager for Sequoia, likes working with Sharritt because she’s straightforward, easy to work with and, “she gets the job done.” Johnson has a background in construction and is familiar with the pitfalls and problems that arise when contractors don’t meet their promised timelines. According to Johnson, the company has a commitment to recycle, use less energy and to waste nothing. Sharritt and her clients enjoy knowing the materials used on the cabinets are California made and the prices are competitive.
Looking forward
According to Sharritt, many potential clients initially cannot believe they’ll have a completely remodeled kitchen or bathroom in only three weeks. Most think she’s talking about refacing, which is replacing only the existing doors and drawer fronts. She has to explain the shortened timeframe is for a complete remodel.
Her customers are always delighted when they find out they’re going to have a brand new kitchen or bathroom. When asked what happens if it takes longer than three weeks, Sharritt firmly says, “It’s impossible.” This is the whole idea behind Rapid Remodel.
Asked about her future goals and aspirations, Sharritt says. “My short-term goal for 2012 is to roll out this process in the entire North Bay.” She believes that once potential clients understand she’s offering a complete remodel and not a refacing job, they’ll have more confidence in what she’s doing. And no matter how you cut it, three weeks sounds better than three months, doesn’t it?
