Elegant Bathrooms

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“Our philosophy is that if it is not good enough to put into my home, then I would not dare to put in a client’s home,” says Patrick Pienkosz, founder and owner of the company. “We do the homework for our clients and work with only the top brands that, like us, are always looking for innovation in style, comfort, and function.”

“Whether our clients are modernizing a tired look, or something needs to be repaired or replaced, we can help then with the products and installation to get the job done.”

According to Patrick, Elegant Bathrooms also understands the importance of getting the job done properly. They recognize that it’s not enough that their design looks good – the design also has to be functional, buildable within the client’s budget, and it has to meet the needs of the clients’ current and future lifestyle.

“We are dedicated to constant, never-ending improvement and education, enabling us to help our clients improve function and convenience,” he says. “We also eliminate poor planning by providing the proper sequence of tasks and making sure designs are practical and feasible from a construction standpoint.

“With Elegant Bathrooms, clients have the confidence in knowing that they will get what they want, made properly, on time and on budget – all with minimum distraction to their home and lifestyle.”

Patrick began his career working on a parts counter for a local company that did bathroom, kitchen and basement renovations. At a young age, he became a project manager at that company. After about four years of that, he moved on to a sales role at another company, where he went on to manage the showroom. Backed by all that experience in all those different roles, he eventually decided to strike out on his own, and he formed Elegant Bathrooms about seven years ago. Initially, he started the company with a partner, though that partner has since moved on and Elegant Bathrooms is now a solo endeavor.

Today, Elegant Bathrooms mainly works within a 60-kilometre radius of their showroom in Stoney Creek, and they do everything from small powder rooms to fully-custom ensuites with closets. On all sizes, they offer clients a fully custom solution. From the beginning, Patrick says their level of customization has always been a point of difference. He says their clients have full control of “every single detail,” from the spacing of their tiles to the layout of their tiles to the size of their grout.

“We tend to work with clients who see the value in that personalization,” Patrick explains. “We work with clients who want things the way they want it.”

“And I believe those clients choose us because of our process,” he adds. “We have a very specific process. We’re not flying by the seat of our pants.”

“We start off with what we call a fact-finding meeting, where we get their measurements and we get an idea of what they are looking for. We get clients to bring that information to our first meeting – because if we don’t have that information, a meeting is usually not helpful, and we don’t want to take up any our clients’ time unnecessarily.”

“Once we have that information, we ask a lot of questions,” Patrick continues. “Based on their answers and the dimensions of their existing space, we come up with an idea, followed by a discovery meeting where we’ll actually come out to their home. Then we’ll actually produce a rendering based on what they are hoping to do and what’s actually possible within their space. Then we’ll provide a proper scope of work with all the information they need, then the client will choose and finalize all their selections. We go through that process until we come to a solution that everyone is happy with.”

When it comes to making selections, Patrick emphasizes that they don’t push specific brands – they choose brands based off the individual wants and needs of the client.

“We do everything we do for a reason, and the reason is we want clients to get exactly what they want,” he says. “As part of that, we’re versatile and flexible.”

Once the design is finalized to everyone’s satisfaction, Elegant Bathrooms will then order all the products. Patrick also emphasizes that they won’t start a job until they have all the products available – but once they have everything in hand, he says “we’ll book the job, we’ll do the installation, and then we’re married to the client until the project is completed to their satisfaction.”

And Elegant Bathrooms does achieve customer satisfaction – their long list of positive reviews and glowing testimonials is testament to that. For example, over the past seven years, the company has received overwhelmingly affirmative reviews on platforms including Houzz and Google. Within those reviews, customers tend to highly praise Patrick and his team for their design knowledge, their friendliness, their responsiveness, and for the quality of their finished product.

Another common refrain in Elegant Bathrooms’ reviews is customers praising the company for the way they dealt with issues when they arose. Patrick credits that feedback to his and his team’s honesty, especially in the face of unexpected challenges.

“We don’t make decisions for clients,” he explains. “We share with them the reality, no matter how scary that might be. For example, we still haven’t learned to see through walls. Demolition days can be the scariest days for clients. Hopefully after there’s no funny business, but if there is any funny business, we’re forthright with people. We explain the problem right away, we come up with a plan that everybody is comfortable with, and then we make the changes that are necessary. Ultimately I think clients appreciate it when you’re up-front with them.”

Over the years, Elegant Bathrooms’ customers have also expressed their appreciation in the form of referrals and repeat business. According to Patrick, they have a lot of clients who they have worked with multiple times on multiple bathrooms, as well as a lot of clients who found the company through friends and family. One particular past client, Patrick says, has actually referred the company to seven different people they have since done projects with.

Creative and passionate

Over the years, Elegant Bathrooms has not only built positive relationships with clients, but also positive relationships with team members – and not just their in-house team members, but also their extended team of subcontractors and suppliers. When it comes to relating to all those partners, Patrick says they abide by the same core values, which include: collaboration, consideration, process, integrity, growth, and respect.

By sticking to those values, Patrick says they have been able to form relationships that go back the entire history of Elegant Bathrooms. The first employee he hired, for example, is still with the company. Many subcontractors and suppliers are similarly longstanding.

“We’ve been working with the same people for a long time, and they are people who share our values,” Patrick says. “They are guys and gals who will drop their hat at a moment’s notice to get something done if I really need their help, and they know I would do the same for them.”

When it comes to suppliers, Patrick adds that he is personally “very selective” about who he will work with:

“Any company that I open an account with is a company that I would put their product in my own home. That’s very important to me. I wouldn’t put want to put something in a client’s home I wouldn’t put in my own home.”

An example of such a supplier is MuraLuxe – an industry-leading, fast-growing, and extremely-innovative design studio based out of Trois-Rivières, Quebec. MuraLuxe specializes mainly in the design, manufacture, and installation of decorative wall coverings for bathrooms, showers, kitchens, and living rooms, but their mission goes beyond simply providing wall coverings. Their goal is to use cutting-edge technologies and manufacturing methods to create unique visual experiences based on the intersection of design, architecture, and materials. They are recognized as one of the most innovative studios in their industry, and they exemplify the kind of creativity and passion that Elegant Bathrooms looks for in all their partners.

Moving forward, Patrick says Elegant Bathrooms will continue to seek out those values in their partners, team members, and even their clients.

Patrick also says they want to work with more creative and passionate clients and thus grow the company – and he believes the key to doing that without compromising on quality or service is technology. To that end, he is currently building out a computer program that will helps clients express their design vision in a fun, easy, and accurate way, and then produce renderings and estimations of their vision. He believes that technology could help the company expand beyond southern Ontario, and even help them build a lasting reputation as industry experts.

“We want our process and our technology to become the industry standard,” he concludes. “When you ask Alexa ‘what height should I put a curtain rod?’ we want her to say that ‘Elegant Bathrooms says it should be 69 inches off the floor.’”

For more on Elegant Bathrooms, the services they provide, the products they offer, and examples of past projects – and to get in touch with Patrick and his team today – visit https://elegantbathrooms.ca/