When it comes to building luxury homes, strong working relationships and an unwavering commitment to quality is fundamental. One of our longstanding commercial partnerships is with premium homebuilder, Cala Homes, who have been working with Laings as its supplier since 2016.
We recently caught up with Fraser Carr, Cala Homes' Sales and Marketing Director, to find out why they chose to partner with Laings, and what sets us apart as a kitchen supplier…
How long have you worked with Laings and why did you decide to partner with them?
“We’ve been working with Laings since 2016, and that was on site at our landmark development, Milltimber. They supplied kitchens and bathrooms for this development, and they've been ever present on our projects since then.”
What do Laings supply to Cala Homes?
“Laings has provided us with kitchens across a number of our sites since 2016, and that’s on a supply and install basis. Milltimber was the only development where the bathrooms were supplied by Laings, purely due to the group deal we have with a national supplier.
“That being said, Laings have been involved in a fairly large portion of the area we build homes in, from Milltimber - which is now in its fourth phase - through to apartments in Aberdeen city centre and housing in Inverurie. They've covered a number of Cala sites across the region, and for quite a diverse range of housing types.”
What are the key benefits of having a dedicated partner like Laings for kitchen installations?
“I think for us, the attraction of working with Laings - aside from their strong local presence - has been the strength of our working relationship across all facets, from design and supply, through to install and aftercare. This has been a benefit for both businesses and is what has maintained our partnership.
“Additionally, having access to the Nobilia kitchen brand through Laings allows us to provide a strong, premium offering to our customer, which reflects what we do as a business in terms of building homes to an exceptional standard.
“Above and beyond that is the fact that Laings also have a retail side of the business; they work with a number of different kitchen brands so we’re not tied to any one supplier. This gives us really good insight and visibility into where consumer trends are and where opportunities may be for us to elevate our offering.
“Across each site, we quite often change the look and the design of the homes based on where we see the purchaser profile, and where we see current and future kitchen trends. Janice and the team at Laings are always really helpful in terms of helping shape that for us, which fits well for us as a premium brand trying to stay ahead of the trends.”
What sets Laings apart from their competitors?
“I think having the retail offering actually complements what Laings do and gives them a point of differentiation around their contract offering. They have more of a design edge than some other companies and that shows they’re a bit more specialist which is what we’re looking for as a premium brand.”
How do you think Cala’s partnership with Laings benefits your end customer?
“Since we've been working with Laings for a long time, I think the quality and the continuity of service between both companies is a huge benefit to our customers.
“For example, the kitchen installation is arguably the most important stage in the process; you can have a beautifully designed kitchen but if the installation isn’t absolutely perfect, then it almost cheapens the standard. Laings have been working with us for over 8 years, so they really understand our house types and how our site teams operate, and we have a really high quality product for them to install in, with various quality checks throughout the build process.
“All of this means that the kitchens are installed to the highest possible standard; it’s clean, any damage is minimised, and ultimately it ensures that we get the homes completed on time to the right standard for our customers.
“Another benefit to our customers is the aftercare service; the speed of response and how the Laings team works with us to overcome any challenge - such as lengthy lead times for kitchen parts - is excellent. If there’s a defective or damaged part, Laings respond to that as quickly as possible which is really good for us and our customers.”
What do you appreciate most about the working relationship between Cala Homes and Laings?
“I think that there's a good level of engagement and honesty between Laings and Cala. We've been through quite a journey in terms of Cala’s growth, but what has been a constant is having Laings as a partner throughout that period of time. For us, being clear about what our plans are, what our delivery is as a business, and hitting our time frames as a house builder really helps them deliver against their time frames.
“We work well together in that way and I think the fact that we trust them in what they do makes our delivery for our customers a lot easier.”
What advice would you give to other housebuilders considering a partnership with Laings?
“For an organisation, I think actually engaging with a supplier early on, taking the time to listen and having a conversation around what they can offer is crucial. That’s part of the fluidity around building a relationship; you need to understand their approach and give them an opportunity to feed into the process.
“Many housebuilders just want their suppliers at the right price, and the design, specification and brand of product comes secondary. Where Laings add their value is in their ability to flex their premium offering. We give them the chance to design and have their input, because it’s their team that ultimately drives the quality of the kitchen design.
Ready to partner with a luxury kitchen, bathroom and bedroom supplier you can trust? Discover more about how we can support your next commercial project…
