Stradling's Cabinets & Remodeling

Our kitchen was small and had very little storage . With the help of stradlings we were able to open the kitchen floor plan and increase our storage . Everyone that helped us from the design team to the construction team was helpful and courteous . The work Crews showed up on time and cleaned up after themselves . From demo to finish our experience was wonderful and the results were more than we had hoped for . We are very happy with this company and the job they did for us

Long review incoming!

We hired Stradling's to replace all of our kitchen cabinets along with adding a coffee bar cabinet to an empty wall.

The process started by meeting with Emmy (our salesperson) and going over a design and pricing. We gathered a few quotes from multiple different companies and after much review, decided to proceed with Stradling's.

Per Stradling's, 50% of payment is due in order for cabinets to get built and installation scheduled. We paid the 50% and had a very reasonable time frame for installation. Prior to install, the other 50% is due. To me that's a very odd practice but figured what the heck, and paid the balance in full (prior to any work being done).

A week prior to installation, Emmy reached out and mentioned that one of the wall cabinets was incorrectly ordered and would delay the process just slightly. Original install date was still set but completion would be a little bit longer than expected. Not ideal but hey, no biggie.

Install date comes and the installer (a sub contractor for Stradling's) was hard at work. Everything was chugging along with the exception of a few things. One being that one of the new floor cabinets was larger than the previous one, so they were going to shim it and elevate it compared to the other floor cabinets. This made a noticeable 1.5 elevation difference between the left side floor cabinet and right side floor cabinet. Thankfully I caught this and told the installer I would cut the floor tile that evening to ensure a proper fit.

The following day they returned to complete what was left (minus the wall cabinet from earlier). This was good news because I had my countertop guy scheduled for two days later to get fabrication started. Well, here's where things got really interesting. Once Stradling's left for the day, my wife and I were inspecting everything and realized that our sink cabinet was 2 off center to the left from the kitchen window! This was a BIG deal obviously as having things centered is important. Thankfully Emmy was able to get her installer out the following day to fix this, but even more thankful that WE caught this (another issue that we had to point out) because if countertops had been fabricated and installed this would have been a catastrophic mistake!

Finally got the countertops in and then the final wall cabinet was installed along with microwave and crown. The finished product was sloppy so we had them back out for the fine detail touch ups.

In short, here's my closing thoughts.

This company would benefit tremendously from having a superintendent follow up on the work performed by subs. The mistakes that we, the homeowners that are paying top dollar for this job, had to catch is unacceptable. If we did not catch these mistakes, this kitchen would have been a disaster. Luckily I'm a tradesman myself and caught these issues.

The reason they get a 3 star versus a 1 or 2 is the responsiveness of Emmy and prompt nature of fixing their mistakes. While I would hope the mistakes never happen, the fact that they took care of it quickly helps.

Additionally the final product was good. We are happy with our kitchen.

Would I recommend Stradling's? 100% I would NOT recommend them. Nevertheless I hope they can improve from this job and learn from mistakes made.

The Good:  The final design fit our needs perfectly.  What once was a worn and outdated kitchen, is now a beautiful and functional part of our home.  Thank you Margo!
The product is quality craftsmanship, drawers are dovetailed,  RD Henry brackets, and soft closures utilized throughout. Finally where pullout shelving is used, soft closures are installed.
- Stradlings Cabinets is a family owed small business in Gilbert, AZ.  
- Shout out to Stradlings General Contractor, Josh Liles.  He is terrific. Josh took care of all the sub contractor issues that popped up during the install process.  From difficult to minor, all tasks were approached with the same 'git er done' attitude.  Obviously Josh was in control of only so many things, but I know a hard worker who cares about his product when I see it.  Thank you Josh. Your efforts were greatly appreciated.

The Bad and Ugly:  if you want to raise your blood pressure, and become frustrated beyond measure, check out the poor customer service made worse by a total lack of communication between the customer and the service provider, at Stradling's Cabinets.  All monetary exchanges must be conducted in cash or check.  
If you agree to this and want them to design for you, it is 10% of the total estimated cost of the job up front. That money is put toward the cost of the project design if a contract is signed.  If not, then it goes into the Stradling coffers.  Depending on sq footage and other factors, one can spend anywhere from 25k - 100k + for a complete kitchen remodel.  
Once design is finished and you agree to have Stradling's do the work, the customer must contact, schedule and pay for the demolition (old cupboards and cabinets) prior to the installation of your new cabinets.(approximately $325,  and old cabinets are recycled ).
Also before Stradlings can order your 'custom cabinets' from the factory the customer must pay 50% of total cost in cash or check .  
And finally, when your new kitchen arrives on pallets and is unceremoniously dropped in your driveway, the customer must pay the remaining balance, (in cash or checks , Lol) before a single nail is driven.
The whole process from start to finish took about 60 days, give or take a weekend.  We were only without water to the kitchen for 11 days. (Washing dishes in the spare bathroom got old after day three, or so)
The most infuriating thing however was not Stradlings business model, living in sawdust for the better part of a month, or even the running water issue.  It was the complete and total lack of communication(zero, zip, nada) between Stradlings and myself.  There were several instances/issues that came up over the course of this project, and I had to call them to find out what happened.  In my mind, if I have paid for an item and/or service up front, I should not be asking the company with my money why things went the way they did.  
When, and I mean WHEN parts didn't come in, or the deconstruction crew screwed up the marble window ledges, or the drywall people were delayed for two days, or the electricians made the wrong cut in my outer wall, or sending an obviously sick man into my home to do the tile work, or the full stop on the completion of my project, because somebody ordered mismatched drawer fronts and  pull handles. Stradling's Cabinets actually had the gall to try and blame me,  (like I would purposely order two different drawer fronts with dissimilar designs) instead of just taking responsibility for the error and getting it fixed.  In the end they said it was the factories fault.  Whatever.  I just want what I paid for, I want it done right the first time, AND if something does go wrong, I do not want to be the one who has to call Stradlings, and ask repeatedly when is it gonna be fixed!  
I found out this evening that Stradlings had the corrected drawer fronts delivered to them on Sept 12th, they then sat on them for five days until Friday,Sept 17 when they were given to the cabinet installer.  During this timeframe, I called the company many times looking for my drawer fronts and handles.  It was very frustrating because no matter whom I spoke with no one seemed to know when I could expect them to be installed.  I even asked if Josh could do the install. The answer was always, he was busy.
It is October 1st and the cabinet installer just finished installing the drawer fronts and hardware.  He informed me that he had the drawer fronts for a full week. He said that he was told that there was 'no rush' on the install!  
Today is Oct 1st. My cabinets that I paid 100% for over a month ago, are finally in and they look very nice.  

Recommendation:  Either do it yourself, or find a company that speaks to the importance of customer service, and then does all they can to make sure that value stands out.  Organizations that display integrity above all else are generally very successful.  Unfortunately, because of my experience with Stradlings, I will not use their services again.

Decided upon Stradling's Cabinets and Remodeling to assist us in our kitchen remodel. It was rough from the beginning, but we were flexible. Strong, opinionated designer. When we got to the point of construction is when the true nightmare began. Construction plans were not followed which affected balance and use of kitchen. This was corrected. New cabinet were scratched and had to be replaced-with owner Mr. Stradling's approval. Grout color was completely a different color than our existing grout. We were told, It would lighted up over time. They eventually replaced the grout so easily, we wondered why did we have to fight so hard to get it done!
Nail heads show throughout our kitchen-still. We were told by owner that the cabinet company doesn't make a wax pencil in the  cabinet color we chose and bought from Stradling's. That would have been nice to know ahead of time. They came to repair the nail heads 2-3 times only to make things worse. They gleam now.
The designer, Margo told us that we were just being too picky about the nail heads showing. I have two pictures below, but there are more examples of nail heads throughout.
Once, while bringing up a needed repair, she  told us, What do you expect? You didn't buy expensive cabinets. Which after spending over $30,000, it was like a knife in my heart. That really hurt !
Top trim is over shadowed by the cabinet doors. The top trim should extend out beyond the doors. Owner, Mr Stradling said, They do, it's just an illusion. Nope, it's not an illusion.
Cabinet trims do not meet the back of the walls. They were cut too short. So, there are gaps. Some are left with empty space, some they filled with putty(?) Looks pretty bad. -See pictures.
We just wanted the job done right without the delays, stress and anxiety. Stradling's  were having issues with the contracted, and we had to pay the price! It was awful!!! We asked Stradling's owner to just please send someone else to our home to finish up, but there they were day after day making more mistakes that needed to be repaired. So upsetting.

Well, they have their money now, so we have given up on anything being corrected. This was the last resort.

Started bathroom remodel! Needless to say, we Did Not go with Stradling's.

Stradling's Cabinets and especially Lonnie did a great job with our cabinets and counter tops for our kitchen and bathroom remodel.  We had a very short window with Christmas looming, and remodel was finished on time.  They went above and beyond to help us make selections and create the perfect space for us.  Lonnie did a great job of communicating everything to us, staying on top of all the details, and followed up often to make sure the work was completed to our satisfaction. We would use their services again.  The pictures below are before we added the backsplash and cabinet knobs/pulls.

Though they mostly do kitchens, I purchased semi-custom cabinetry for a home den.  The quality was excellent--genuine hardwoods, solid drawers, etc.  No particle board here.  They were able to configure exactly what I wanted in my space.  Owners were very experienced and knowledgeable about the products and options.  I highly recommend.