Kole Made Design/Build

We recently completed a renovation/addition to our home which included a new Kitchen and Master Bath. Overall, our experience with Kole Made from start to finish was excellent. From initially identifying the kitchen placement to assisting in lining up other professionals for us to move the job forward, their commitment to our project was stellar. Kole Made's customer service throughout the entire project was excellent, super responsive and most importantly polite and always kind. And of course those ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS cabinets! We had Kole Made design, create and install our kitchen cabinetry as well as our Master Bath vanity. In addition, we had them create a custom piece for our "Home Center/Office Space" which came out perfectly. Niko, Matt and the entire Kole Made team are a rare find in today's market. They are extremely talented, professional, highly organized, and passionate about their craft. We feel very fortunate to have been able to work with them on our project and would absolutely use them again!

This is our second project with the Kole Made team, and after the design/build of our first commercial location, it was an easy choice to partner with them again. The team offers a comprehensive and trustworthy experience beginning with design-strategy, through materials and fabrication, and culminates in the delivery of a fully executed, operational, and useable product. By partnering with Kole Made, clients are offered a hands-on approach, ambitious problem-solving through the use of materials, and the delivery of a unique product that's built to endure. Their collective curiosity supports the highest quality craftsmanship and their deep sense of responsibility make them an easy recommendation for wide variety of projects and applications.

I recently worked with Kole Made to design and build custom cabinetry for my home theater and stereo components. I could have easily gone to a simple cabinet maker for this project, but I really wanted something that not only met my needs in terms functionality, but also for quality craftsmanship. I wanted something special. Something unique. Something people would ask about. I had already heard of Kole Made and their reputation for doing really cool, creative stuff. I also knew they worked with a lot of with interesting materials (reclaimed wood) that you just don't see very much these days. So I was pretty sure going in that these were the guys I wanted for my project. My only concern was whether my job would be "big enough" for them. (since I knew that they're involved in all sorts of projects much bigger than mine) That said, when I first met with them they quickly embraced my project, offered terrific design ideas, suggested a terrific contrast of wood options. and the established a timeline for project completion that was exactly spot on. When I took receipt of the final product I couldn't have been any more pleased. They really hit the mark in every aspect of what I was looking for. (or exceeded) All throughout the process they were super professional and easy to work with too. They're just a cool company that's got some really talented people doing some really, really cool stuff. I'm already thinking of my next project with them. I can't recommend higher.

My name is John Singletary and I am an a professional, exhibiting fine art photographer based in Philadelphia. I came to Kole Made with a unique concept for an installation piece. Although my job was very unique, fully custom and outside the realm of what a woodworker and designer might encounter on a regular basis, they did a tremendous and beautiful job. Nico and Matt's design sensibility and execution is impeccable. They are creative professionals of the highest caliber and I had a very good experience working with them on this project. I was under a tight deadline, they gave me an honest timeframe and kept it without issue. The final product is beautiful, flawlessly executed to specification and beyond what I could have envisioned. I highly recommend Kole Made based on a wonderful experience working with them.

I have had a chance to work with Kole Made on several projects both commercial and residential. They are extremely professional and have helped me both realize my own design ideas as well as help me problem solve and come up with creative design solutions. They are timely and thorough in their responses,

Kole Made was the perfect fit for our home remodel. We wanted exciting and innovative ideas – we got just that with Kole Made. They were extremely warm, open-minded, and communicative. Niko came to us with multiple design options for our downstairs. When we purchased the house, the downstairs was separated and unconnected as a result of previous additions and remodels. Niko and his team opened up the space and reconfigured the kitchen, dining, and living as a large and unified space. They moved the kitchen to the center of the space and tied everything together with their gorgeous redwood cabinetry. We definitely chose the most dramatic of Kole Made’s designs; it looks better in reality than it did on paper. Kole Made designed a perfect home! Their craftsmanship and woodwork is extraordinary. The design feels very personal. Niko has built a one of the most unique companies in the Philadelphia area. Communication throughout the project was constant and our trips into the city to the workshop were always very helpful. Mitch, Esther and Matt are wonderful and Juan and Ryne and all of the woodworking craftsmen are very skilled and knowledgeable. We were always invited into their process to understand how everything was conceived and their timeline. Kole Made was the best choice we made. We would highly recommend them and can’t wait to work with them again!

Kole Made takes fabricating with wood to another level and into the 21st century - often times joints, surface techniques, and wood choices are in line with great new American sensibilities. They use reclaimed American yellow cedar for our table tops, and modern white washed or pure exterior coatings to keep surface finishing to a minimum. I'm consistently impressed by the work they do for residential and commercial clients, which keeps it simple, light and elegant - very tough to do in any medium. I wish had a kitchen I could outfit with their minimalist, perfected work.

Let me quickly chalk a number of the standard bullet points off of the traditional review list- Kole Made was fair, they were honest, their delivery was timely, their customer service was solid, and the quality of their work speaks for itself (see pics). But honestly, when confronting a project as sizable as the one we undertook with them, I expected all of the above boxes to be checked. What made the project exciting, fulfilling, and worthy of a 5-star rating was the nuance with which their approach was coupled. We began by delivering them a digital shell of what the interior of our restaurant was slated to look like- nothing more than floor and wall colors and a base outlay of our restaurant's dining room. From there, Kole Made took the reigns and began piecing together our furniture design/layout puzzle. I expected initial conversations to revolve around types of wood, heights of tables, and colors of chairs. Instead, Niko (Kole Made's main visionary, you could say) took a fully organic approach, and began by scrutinizing our anticipated customer traffic flow. Where is our entrance door in relation to our checkout? How can we create design elements that trigger our customers to queue in line upon entering without needing written, posted instructions? As a takeout-heavy restaurant, traffic flow is tremendously important, and it was refreshing to have Kole Made instruct our expectations as to where our customers would naturally flow, and then to design our furniture layout around those expectations. After determining the footprint of where our furniture would be placed, the focus then shifted to how we will best be noticed by passersby. An opportunity to convert our largest window into a seating bench had escaped us and the architects, but was pointed out by Kole Made as a great way to both increase customer visibility from the outside and to comfortably add an additional seven seats into our smallish dining room space. The actual furniture design process was fluid and seamless. We were given samples of various wood types, samples of different finishes, and were invited to their shop where they actually used wooden scraps and beams to replicate our exact layout- to full scale- to illustrate the precise length and width of each table and bench, and to show exact spacing. It completely eliminated any second guessing once pulling the trigger on wood types, finishes, sizes, designs, and layout. Their execution was as impressive as their process, and we couldn't be happier with our finished product. Just prior to opening- literally only two weeks before- one of our industry friends had commented that our entrance reminded him of a subway. It was stark and ugly, and didn't at all match our interior. Having never put much thought into our exterior, we agreed. We contacted Kole Made (Mitch took the lead on this project) and they were able to turn around a same day design/proposal, and ultimately complete the work before we opened. Again, the picture speaks for itself. Having only been open for less than four months, we're inundated with compliments about our interior- namely the wooden features. If a customer of ours posts an interior shot of our space on Instagram or Facebook, chances are that either a Kole Made table, a Kole Made stanchion, or our Kole Made bar paneling is a focal point, often appearing alongside the food itself. The name of our restaurant is Real Food Eatery, and we're located at 207 S. 16th St. in Philadelphia (on the corner of 16th and Walnut). If you're considering hiring Kole Made or are simply interested in viewing their work, then please visit our restaurant and ask for Mike or John...or just take a look around.

This is my first collaboration with Niko and Mitch from Kole Made LLC, and it was a great experience! Their professionalism and attention to detail in all their projects, along with the excellent craftsmanship enhance every single detail of any design. I designed the winning PlayHouzz that was donated to Families Forward Philadelphia and, after many adjustments in time schedule and design, I have to say that I am very pleased with the result. I look forward to work with them again!!!

It was so comfortable/fun/easy ... the list goes on ... working with KOLE made. The cabinets they made for our bathroom are amazing. We absolutely LOVE them - they are truly the centerpiece of the space. We experienced excellent craftsmanship, materials, and service at every step along the way. We especially loved working side-by-side on the design and appreciated the detail and thoughtfulness that went into the process and final product. We can't wait to work with KOLE made on our next project!!

I had a very loose vision of what I wanted in my kitchen when I reached out to Niko at Kole Made. I knew I wanted an "open plan" and liked the idea of floating shelves...and that was it. Not having any idea other than a very loose design, Niko took the time to ask me more about my space, my ideas, and my vision for the kitchen. He proposed multiple designs and produced a mock-up of options that far surpassed what I had imagined for my kitchen. Kole Made created a personal, innovative, and unique design with careful attention to small details that more than met all of my needs (and wants). And all of this on top of a beautiful, quality product. Kole Made took the time to get to know me as a person, not just a client, and gave me the option of making informed choices about the products and designs that have made my kitchen a warm, inviting, and beautiful space. After the initial work was completed, I quickly went back to Kole begging for two other custom pieces to be made. Kole Made designed and fabricated a stunning walnut pantry and charactered cedar tracked door, providing me with both functional pieces and distincive design.

Wow – where do I start? I have worked with Niko and the Kole Made team on a number of projects in various houses and found the process and work to be incredibly inspiring. We worked on a full kitchen remodel with 100% reclaimed material, a dining room table using corbels from a local Victorian home, and built-in bookcases for my library using reclaimed water tower wood, and we are currently collaborating on a new kitchen in a home I recently purchased. Each project had it’s own theme and it’s own life and I was truly sad when the team packed up their tools and walked out the door. What I like and trust the most about working with Kole Made is Niko’s inspiration stems from external influences that are constantly changing and - this in an important distinction -his ability to truly get to know his clients and their space so that the product ultimately feels and resembles their lifestyle. One example that stands out in my mind is in my kitchen we wanted to put up floating shelves and I was pretty set on the length and layout. During the project we uncovered the supporting wall and found beautiful brick peppered with some original colorful stucco. As a team we discussed shelf placement and should the stucco stay or go for two weeks while the rest of the work continued. After much debate we landed on keeping the stucco and using it to frame out the shelving placement. I never felt rushed or pressured while trying to figure out such a key element to the design. If you want unique design, value locally made and want to work with a team of craftsmen, you should consider Kole Made.