Earlier this month we celebrated a decade of Maple & Gray. A wonderful journey we have had so far and thank you to everyone who made it to our open day to make a toast with us. These days we class ourselves as leading creators of bespoke, hand painted shaker kitchens in Berkshire, Surrey, and Buckinghamshire and as you can imagine we have quite a busy workshop. Today everything is handmade on our premises in Winkfield, Berkshire. We couldn’t have done it without our wonderful clients.
We pride ourselves on helping you to design your own kitchen, we take the time to get to know you and your family and how you want to use the space. This enables us to make recommendations specific to your requirements; we recognise that when it comes to your kitchen, there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’.
If you would like to speak to us about your next bespoke kitchen, make sure you call us on 01344 627150 or email us.
To celebrate Maple & Gray turning 10 we would like to share with you a little bit about where it all started and how we, Tony & Catherine, launched Maple & Gray and give a little insight into our independently run business.
Where it started
Having thought about it for a long time, Tony took the plunge and made the huge decision 15 years ago to retrain to be a cabinet maker. Knowing this was what he wanted to do he set about working on his own making kitchens and furniture in a small workshop, in the garden. At this time, we married and were blessed shortly after by the births of our 2 children.
Catherine was working in marketing recruitment full time and although loved what she did, it was time to find something that gave her more time at home to be there for our family. Whilst Tony’s business was moving along nicely we knew there was more potential. With this in mind, using Catherine’s business head and Tony’s craftsmanship together we decided to take our small garden business to a totally different level.
Maple & Gray was born
The business rebranded, moved to much larger premises, went through vigorous amounts of planning and we relaunched together as Maple & Gray. Working morning to night, promoting and running the business was time consuming yet rewarding and allowed us to both be there for our children when we needed to be. The early days were exhausting; however, as each project completed we got a real sense of reward and pride.
Why Maple & Gray
People often ask us where the name Maple & Gray came from. We would love to have an exciting story, however we just felt it was the right fit. We went around the houses with various names to begin with but after a bit of time we kept coming back to Maple & Gray. We guess they are two words thrown around a lot when it comes to designing kitchens. Looking back, we’re really pleased we chose it and we are proud of the business we have built.
Working together
People often ask us what it’s like to work so closely together whilst also being a married couple, luckily for us it doesn’t cause any issues. Although our paths cross many times a day, we have very distinct roles within the business which play to our strengths and also means that we don’t step on each other’s toes. Tony manages the production side of the business and is always in the workshop or on site whereas Catherine is in the showroom meeting clients, managing projects and the business administration side of Maple & Gray. Although things can be very stressful at times running an independent business, we love that we get to do something we enjoy every day. We are both creative people and what we do enables us to express our creativity, albeit in a different way for each of us every day.
10 years of Maple & Gray
We have met some really amazing people along the way and have delivered on some incredible projects for many, including some really high-profile customers. We enjoy getting to know our clients and we often keep in touch beyond the project, no matter the size. We’re passionate about what we do and really care about doing a good job so it’s really nice when we get positive reviews and feedback. If you have worked with us already and haven’t yet left a google review, we would love it if you could take the time to do so, it means so much to the credibility of an independent business to have honest reviews online.
Competing in the industry
In terms of the industry there’s always going to be competition. However; we all offer something different, from how the kitchen is made, to the materials that are used, or down to the approach that each company adopts. There are many differences amongst our competition. As a small independent business one of the most important things for us is that what we deliver is right for you. We pride ourselves on building a relationship with our client by providing one main point of contact throughout the whole process. Our approach is client focused with no pressure to adopt our ideas, we want to ensure you’re happy with every decision you make.
Why chose an independent
When we started out, we were really worried that we were too small and unknown for clients to want to work with us. It is really refreshing to hear time and time again that people love working with local independent small businesses. With Maple & Gray you get a really personal service and we pride ourselves on providing a great customer experience. Ten years in and we can’t wait to see what the next ten years holds for us. We hope that you have either previously enjoyed our services or that you’ll choose us for your next kitchen project.
Get in Touch
If you are looking to add something special to your home with a custom, handmade kitchen, make sure you get in touch with us. You can call us on 01344 627150 or email us. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn if you’re looking for inspiration.