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Rough week with a job in Boise, but the client loved the result. Do we charge more for that? | Cabinetmakers - Vivisector

wren_mitchell•1mo ago

Rough week with a job in Boise, but the client loved the result. Do we charge more for that?

Last Tuesday I had a kitchen cabinet install that went sideways from the start. The drawings showed 34 inches of clearance above the fridge, but the actual ceiling was 33 and a half. I had to re-cut the upper cabinet face frames on site, which added about 4 hours. Then the drawer slides I ordered showed up wrong, the soft close ones instead of the push to open ones we spec'd. I called the supplier and they said they'd overnight the right ones, but that pushed the whole install to Thursday. By Thursday afternoon I was ready to lose it. But when the homeowner walked in, she pointed at the walnut island and said, "This is exactly what I pictured, maybe better." She paid the full invoice and left a good review that same night. So here's the debate: we had a week that technically lost money on labor, but the final product impressed her enough to bring in two referrals. Is it smart to eat those costs for the long term, or should I have added a change order for the re-cut and the wait? I know some guys who would have charged double time for any field adjustment. I tend to just fix it and smile. Which side are you on, and has a bad week ever turned into your best marketing just by keeping quiet about the mess?

1 comments

1 Comment

gracethomas1mo ago

And I get that, but I think you're looking at this wrong. Eating costs like that sets a bad pattern, because now the client thinks that's just how you work. Next time she recommends you to a friend, that friend expects the same deal, and you're stuck in the slow grind of giving away your time. A change order doesn't have to be hostile, it just says "here's what the plan didn't cover, here's the real cost." The referral is nice, but it doesn't pay for the extra four hours or the headache of waiting on those slides. If you keep smiling through the mess, you're basically training people to see you as the cheap guy who fixes everything for free.