News

Father and Son look through the round window for growth

August 2009

Operating different businesses in different counties isn’t always the easiest way to work together. However Tim and Dale Williams are overcoming these issues to create what is hoped to be the leading company in the South West for Bespoke kitchens and home furniture.

From his base in Newton Abbot, Tim Williams has for some 14 years been creating wooden doors, stairs and windows for historic and listed buildings predominately in South Devon, through his company Williams Joinery.

Dale his son left Bath University in 2004 with a BA in design and having relocated to mid Cornwall started Kettle Kitchens. Through Dales’ desire to ‘design and manufacture the best products’ he has steered Kettle into providing kitchens for unusual properties. These include log cabins, manor houses, and more recently one of the world famous Veryan Round Houses.

Tim and Dale share the same desire and passion for mixing modern styles and ideas with traditional furniture and cabinets, so a coming of the ways was perhaps inevitable. Working closer together has allowed both businesses to expand in their product offerings and geographic capabilities with Dale and his team of carpenters now installing his father’s kitchen cabinets in Devon and Tim producing Windows and bespoke doors for kitchens in deepest Cornwall.

Whilst both businesses have benefitted from the closer relationship, for Dale it has also meant that he has been able to source unusual shaped cabinets and doors closer to home, as his previous suppliers were in Ireland. As Dale says, ‘Commercially we have benefitted from reduced costs, quicker delivery and more control, but also been able to deliver on our promises of using a local supply chain’.

His father Tim goes on to say, ‘without a doubt it is great to be working closely with my son, but his inspiration has also driven our business to look at new products, stretching our imagination whilst realising how capable we are. As an established business you often concentrate too hard on the products that work, and lose the hunger of youth that drives you to learn and try new things’

Their latest joint projects have included the Veryan Round House and a waterside period holiday home in Salcombe, which benefits from fantastic views through its new round ‘porthole windows’. So it is possible to fit a round peg in a square whole!

Local kitchen designer greets international Star of TV makeover programs

July 2009

Kettle Kitchens Ltd, based near Fowey was on hand to welcome Laurence Lewelyn-Bowen, TV personality and the face of Interior Design when he visited what has been described as the ‘Best Development in Cornwall’ by the Daily Mail.

Kettle Kitchens Ltd, which is owned and managed by Dale Williams, hit the headlines recently when they won the contract to supply and install 46 kitchens at The Bay, Talland an exclusive development of holiday and residential homes being built on a land that was previously used as a caravan park.

Dale Williams comments, ‘this project is by far the most prestigious development we have worked with to date, which is nerve racking to start with. When we heard that the infamous designer Laurence Lewellyn Bowen was visiting to advise on the interior designs and styling I couldn’t have been more excited or worried! Fortunately he approved of the work that we have done and the styling and contents of the kitchens that we have designed’.

Talland Bay LLP, the developers, is headed up by Sean Hodgson who as a perfectionist believes in working with the right teams to deliver on hisclients dreams and wishes, has been working with Lawrence Lewelyn Bowen to create the most desirable and functional interiors possible in properties that have been built for family seaside and outdoors lifestyles.

When asked about the involvement of an international celebrity with his development Sean says, ‘we are creating a development that benefits from being in one of the most beautiful corners of the UK, however to ensure that each house has global appeal we have asked for advice from the one person who understands the region and understands the needs of families who lead busy lives which include international jetsetting’ he goes on to say ‘having seen some of the award winning private properties and other developments that Laurence has been involved, both locally and in London it was imperative that we looked to him for advice’.

A square block in a round hole

May 2009

A square block in a round hole.
No corners to cut
A craftsman who can’t cut corners.

Dale Williams owner of Charlestown based Kettle Kitchens ltd, was intrigued when asked to design a kitchen for one of Cornwall’s most iconic properties.

Veryan is a typical picture postcard Cornish village, unique however in the style of its 5 famous roundhouses. Each was built in the 19th century by a missionary named Reverend Jeremiah Trist for his daughters. In a land of myth and legend the Reverend believed that by building ahouse without corners there would be no-where for the devil to hide, thus protecting his daughters. The additiona of a crucifix to the roof tops added a final level of protection.

There are 5 roundhouses in Veryan, 2 pairs marking each end of the village and one in the centre and it is one of these that Dale has recently created a new kitchen for, as he says, ‘we are often asked to create working kitchens for older properties, many of which are listed or have some constraint in terms of location, size or level of protection, so we were excited by the initial prospect.’

As with any project, there was an initial consultation with the client, Mr and Mrs.......... who use the house as a holiday cottage/live there permanently. This initial consultation couldn’t be more important in the case of the round house, as it is literally trying to fit a square peg in a round hole! Imagine trying to source a round cooker and hob or dishwasher. Properties these days are designed for ease and cleanliness, with straight walls with clean lines and the appliance and kitchen companies have followed suit.

Mr and Mrs .............. enjoy a relaxed lifestyle in Veryan, and when at home enjoy spending time cooking and entertaining, so a hard wearing with Granite worktops, would fit with the style of property and last a lifetime. This is where some of the problems started, not only is it impossible to get lengths of worktop-especially heavy granite, round tight corners, only when Dale and his team looked at the only remaining option- the windows, did it really become apparent that when you build small round houses, you also need small rounded windows. Fortuneately the custom made worktop went through-as the picture shows with a few centimetres to spare on each side!

Now completed, Kettle Kitchens are looking for their next challenge, which looks like it will come in the shape of a listed Manor House in East Cornwall.

All at Sea in a Kettle

April 2009

A throwaway comment by carpenter Chris Evans at work one day has lead to Charlestown based Kettle Kitchens Ltd sponsoring new shirts for Par Bay Gig Club.

The Par team who came second in the 2008 Mens Championships in 2008 on the Isles of Scilly are looking forward to another challenging season with a view to taking Gold this year.

Kettle Kitchens Managing Director, Dale Williams jokes as to how the sponsorship came about ‘Chris commented that he had to raise some money for new shirts for the Par Bay gig club, but wasn’t sure how to ask, so seeing the an opportunity float in front of my eyes and the sunken look on Chris’ face I offered to sponsor the teams shirts for 2009’.

Having battled last year to attain a placing Chris feels that through a rigourous training session and with the support of their loyal followers Par Bay are in with an excellent chance of getting gold in this years Championships, which take place between the 1st an 4th May.

‘Best Development in Cornwall’

March 2009

Kettle Kitchens Ltd, based near Fowey has been chosen to design and fit the kitchens in what has been described as the ‘Best Development in Cornwall’ by the Daily Mail.

Kettle Kitchens Ltd, which is owned and managed by Dale Williams, hit the headlines recently due to their philosophy or working only with local craftsmen who benefit from a further rigourous training to improve not just their skills base but also benefit Kettles clients by providing a better product.

It is by setting these standards that ensured Kettle Kitchens stood out when they were tendering for the work at The Bay, Talland an exclusive development of 46 holiday and residential homes being built on a land that was previously used as a caravan park.

Dale Williams comments, ‘as a business we were interested in this project as it perfectly fits with our profile—local work for local people, built to a standard that is representative of our county and workforce’ he goes on to say ‘whilst we normally concentrate on older, historic properties the Talland Bay development is being built to reflect its surroundings and to blend in with the beautiful and dramatic coastline of South East Cornwall’

Talland Bay LLP, the developers, is headed up by Sean Hodgson who is a strong believer in working with local teams and creating a development that works with its immediate community is up beat about life as a developer in the current economic climate ‘Half the development has sold. One person flew over from Singapore last weekend, put down a deposit, then flew back,’ he goes on to say ‘It's one of the few places I've ever been where you can't hear a man-made sound.’ Owners of the 42 cottages will have access to indoor and outdoor pools, tennis courts, a spa, general store and wine bar.

Hodgson's cottages will appeal to those wanting to enjoy the ruggedness of the area from a luxurious base. ‘They are for proper families and will suit outdoorsy types - people who want action," he says. "And with the pools and spa, I think they will also, if desired rent out well throughout the year.’

Dale who was involved in the St Moritz project on Cornwall’s North Coast last year is simularly upbeat about the housing industry. ‘Every day we are seeing new enquiries coming through from people who are either completely renovating their own homes, or who have small development projects, the one thing that unites people it seems is the desire for quality, something that Cornwall is very good at providing’.

So perhaps as we go through into spring we are seeing the ‘green shoots of recovery!’

Kettle Kitchens benefits from employee training

January 2009

Bespoke kitchen manufacturer, Kettle Kitchens Ltd has seen huge benefits from their investment in staff training. As a young business that has seen exponential growth Managing Director, Dale Williams needed to recruit 2 new carpenters between August and December of 2008—a financial challenge for any growing business, however, not only are Dales kitchen innovative and built to last but this philosophy runs through out his business.

To over come the issues created by a shortage of staff, Kettle have been working with South West Highways to train his new carpenters. Nineteen year olds Chris Evans and Frank McAvoy who joined Kettle in August and December respectively are now training for their NVQ2 qualifications in Kitchen and Bathroom installation, with Chris finishing this month.

Dale comments ‘Having seen other businesses over stretch their resources when recruiting new team members I wanted to ensure that I could afford the right people, who have the right experience, so what better way then to train them on the job and ensure that they receive qualifications on the way!’

John Matthews from South West Highways goes on to say that ‘whilst many of our clients are excellent tradesmen, Dale however takes this one step further by instilling pride and respect into everything that he and his team embark upon’.

This attitude, the training and having the right team in place have seen Kettle win new contracts throughout Cornwall and helped them to secure preferred supplier status with bespoke residential log cabin manufacturer, North Coast Log Cabins, which has already resulted in the installation of a further 4 made to order kitchens. With regards to the future of Kettle and the young team he says ‘By investing my time and the governments money now, I am getting a committed team to take the business forward, we now need an electrician and I am going to follow the same process. By growing in this manner we can ensure a stable future for the business which is especially important in these challenging times’.

Cornish Kitchen Company goes back to school

December 2008

In order to buck the trends of ‘January Sales’ a bespoke kitchen company from Charlestown, has joined forces with the Wild Food Cookery School to offer a more tangible offer for new customers.

Dale Williams, proprietor of Kettle Kitchens says ‘As a small business we are unable to offer huge discounts to encourage new business. As our products are designed to order and made as originals they are already priced competitively, however as with any business we need to promote ourselves as being open for business, especially in the current climate.’

Working with the Wild Food School in Lostwithiel, Kettle Kitchens have created a course that will not only teach its clients new skills for when their kitchens are completed but also by showing the art of forageing teach the pupils, which wild foods are good to eat and at the same time how to save money! Dale Williams comments ‘This idea was prompted by the current economic climate which made us think about sustaining our business whilst showing our clients the benefits of saving money by eating straight from natures larder’

As a member of the business community in Cornwall both Dale and Marcus Harrison, proprietor of the Wild Food School believe that by working together they are benefiting each other as well as their clients whilst maintaining the ethos of ‘keeping trade local’.