As an experienced A&D professional, you’re no stranger to juggling a client’s budget with their design expectations. For decades we’ve worked with professional designers and architects on an extensive list of custom furniture and millwork. Often, our partners underestimate how much custom millwork will cost to install into their overall design.
Millwork is a reliable way to pack a punch in any design. Nevertheless, there are several factors many people do not consider before adding millwork to their design plans. Having a serious conversation with your clients about the millwork budget, adding millwork on large-scale design elements, and collaborating with the millwork company to ensure dimensions and design are perfect, are just a few of the key considerations to keep in mind to bring millwork in within budget.
This post walks you through four steps you need to take to incorporate millwork into your design without blowing your client’s budget.
Set Realistic Expectations With Clients
Millwork is an excellent way to enhance the overall aesthetic of a design while ensuring every element comes together perfectly. That’s why many clients want to incorporate some level of millwork into their design. However, custom millwork can be a costly addition to any design.
The first step in bringing millwork in on budget is to ensure you have a conversation with your clients about realistic expectations. While the highly customized nature of millwork is great for architects and designers who want to control the end result of a project, permanent millwork is more costly than other semi-permanent or moveable design elements.
Ensure your client understands the cost of implementing millwork in the overall design.
Include Millwork For A Big Impact
One way to ensure your millwork comes in on budget is to install customized millwork in spaces where it can make a big impact. For example, installing custom wall paneling in a corporate reception area can elevate a space and tie together other custom features such as doors, and stonework.
Custom millwork is an excellent way to elevate a design, but adding millwork to every element of a commercial space might come in over budget. That’s why we recommend adding beautiful millwork to common areas. Coupling wholesale pieces with more ornamental custom millwork makes for noteworthy statement spaces that keep your clients happy while coming in at budget.
Consider the following custom millwork to elevate your design, meet your budget, and make your clients happy:
- Custom wall panels
- Raised panel doors
- Feature-rich displays
- Ornamental casings
- Statement frames
See these custom millwork examples come to life in our featured partnerships.
Partner With An Expert Custom Millwork Design Company
With over 4.5 decades of experience in the custom millwork industry, we know the only way to bring in millwork on budget is to partner with the pros. Hundreds of millwork projects have taught us that we can bring any design to life. However, not every millwork design will fit your client’s budget.
That’s why we encourage A&D experts to partner with millwork artisans to determine budget restrictions and design expectations. There are many ways we can incorporate custom millwork into a design, but making sure those designs work with a set budget is critical.
For example, if we determine your budget will not accommodate your initial millwork design, our team of expert designers and artisans will work with you on creating a design that works. Incorporating large-scale millwork may seem like a budget-breaker, but you may be surprised to learn that small millwork might be more expensive.
When you’re ready to discuss your millwork preferences, we’re here to help you express your unique design.
Meticulously Review Millwork Design Mockups
Once you work with a custom millwork company like Acacia, you must carefully review all design mockups. While millwork is an essential component of any beautifully designed space, it is also a highly customized element.
Once designed, there is no way to reconfigure millwork. If you don’t carefully review the designs the custom millwork company provides, you may need to have the pieces remade, which will inevitably blow your budget.
Before signing off on your millwork design, make sure you review the following:
- Measurements are correct
- Wood type and color are accurate for all pieces
- Quantities are accurate
- Any hardware for specific millwork (e.g., doors and wall panels)
It’s no secret that custom millwork is expensive. However, custom millwork is a design element that can bring your statement to life. The advantages of including custom millwork in your design are vast, making it an excellent choice for A&D professionals looking to elevate their designs.
Now that you know the four ways to include custom millwork in your design within budget, the options are endless. If you’re looking for the perfect partnership to bring your custom millwork designs to life, or simply need a second pair of eyes, contact Acacia now. We’ll make sure your custom millwork design comes in on budget.
