As John stated in a recent New York Times article, “Designing a bathroom takes an inordinate amount of time.  You have to get different pieces from a lot of different vendors.”  He’s right.  The reality of the bathroom remodeling process is a logistical nightmare.

We believe that having the customer make creative decisions earlier in the process allows for everyone to work together more efficiently:  homeowner, architect, designer, and contractor.  Online bathroom design can accomplish this.

Building an online environment where homeowners can make concrete design choices that satisfy both the “design eye” and “installer hand” is a place of opportunity.  It allows customers to make product choices in the comfort of their own home.  But, it’s not enough to build a site with a plethora of product choices and a checkout system — enter the credit card number and the job is one step easier…. Not so fast!  How does the homeowner know everything is going to look good together and, most importantly, work together?  (Shipping logistics, too? That’s another blog post.)  The pieces have to fit together.

One key to this online bathroom design is the detail of product compatibility.  That is to say, the products that one chooses must work/ fit together in both style and function.  We all have opinions on what does and does not look good – that’s the easy part.  The tough part is making sure that the vanity you adore fits the sink you won’t part with, which matches the mirror you have your heart set on because you brought it home from your travels in Rajasthan.

The special sauce in our online design tool is that we make those behind-the-scene decisions on fit and function for you – we make sure that the vanity and sink fit properly together (including the necessary pipes and hardware) and we give you the mirror that you want in the vanity-matching finish and style.  SO, all you need to do is choose what you think looks good.  (Contractors, take note, we’re thinking of you here.)  And, no, we don’t skimp on product quality… we’ve got the good stuff.

So, when we talk about bathroom design online, one key element, Style, needs to be paired with Fit and Function.  Homeowners need better choices, not more.

Designers/Contractors – How do you present product choices to your customers?