Koubou Interiors

We’ve used the services of Gilly on a number of projects recently. She is very helpful as is her team and was able to offer some great advice as well as providing our clients with the perfect look to complement the kitchens which we designed and fitted. She also has a skilled workforce to create the perfect look which we have also needed to use on occasions, thank you again!

KOUBOU INTERIORS: A REVIEW Our situation We are a retired couple, living in a late Victorian semi-detached house in central Crowthorne. We have been here for around 33 years. About five years after moving in, we decided to remodel the lounge and dining rooms. Unfortunately, we were new to this game, received extremely poor advice, and took on a bunch of “cowboys”. As a consequence, despite using up a lot of cash, we were left with a very unsatisfactory and ugly result. The whole experience made us feel that we had compromised our dreams, leaving us generally suspicious about builders and decorators. It took a lot of hard work and ingenuity on our part to get the place looking anywhere near presentable. Recently, we came to the reluctant conclusion that these rooms needed another update: they had always been dark but now looked tired and cluttered as well. We felt uncertain about any more disruption to our living rooms, and we were in need of help and guidance. Warm and supportive working relationships My wife found Koubou Interiors and suggested that we should work with them. The team we met were Gilly, Carolina and Pam. From the first, it was clear that they were pleasant people who genuinely cared about both our project and our personal satisfaction. They took on the brief with energy and passion, at all times responding quickly to our requests and enquiries. By working closely with us throughout, they made us feel more like close colleagues than customers. Koubou listened carefully to our ideas, while introducing a variety of possibilities that we simply hadn’t thought of, thus expanding the range of solutions available to us. Design leadership and responsiveness At first, the designs that Gilly laid before us struck me as rather drastic and risky. I admit that I was initially wary about going the whole way. Gilly’s response was both patient and calm. While in no way overbearing, she was persistent in explaining the benefits of her design. She demonstrated real understanding of my issues and, by allowing me to voice my concerns, helped me to appreciate the advantages of a more radical approach. Positive and flexible approach It is said that no plan survives contact with the enemy: in our case, reality intruded when we realised that some of our aspirations might exceed our budget. In addition, when we examined our early ideas fully, we saw the need to rethink a couple of our choices. The Koubou team were very supportive and good humoured, responding enthusiastically and offering adaptive alternatives that really met our goals and fulfilled our dreams. Effective project management skills Even a small to medium sized conversion project like ours needs careful planning and execution. These days, health and safety requirements alone can be a nightmare of pitfalls. To have these issues taken out of our hands was very liberating. Unsurprisingly, perhaps, we experienced a few rough patches: a few supplies were slow in arriving; some minor, unforeseen problems arose; a tradesman had a couple of days of illness. On all these occasions, the Koubou team were quick to respond with new solutions, mitigating the difficulties, maintaining our confidence and keeping our trust. Results The conversion has worked extremely well. Not only has our living space become much more effective and flexible, it has become much brighter, with a wonderfully enchanting feeling of airiness. Visiting family and friends love it, feeling very comfortable and welcomed. We couldn’t have asked for a better outcome. In summary •Koubou gave us a first class professional service. •They demonstrated strong attention to both overall design and detail. •They were very willing to adapt designs to fit within our budget. •They are nice people to work with. •They exceeded our expectations.

We have been working with Pam at Koubou since 2012 to transform our home. Work started with the Master bedroom, we were impressed with the service delivered. We are continuing to make use of her knowledge and skills in applying change throughout the remainder of our home. What Pam and Koubou have provided us is beyond doubt a professional service. We knew what we wanted to achieve, what we did not have was the time and knowledge of suitable suppliers of the products, materials and skilled people to produce the “look” we sought. Pam listens, notes our requirements, then following her research we meet and review proposed products and review samples. In some cases visits are organised to supplier showrooms to enable us to view the products or larger samples of fabrics. It has been a pleasure to work with Pam of Koubou who has always shown great communication and interpersonal skills. Throughout this continuing transformation of our home, Pam has really understood our needs, likes and importantly dislikes. Her knowledge, research and liaison with suppliers enabled us to make the final decision and let her get on with the detail to enable us to obtain the look we sought for our home.

Gilly and her award winning team are very enthusiastic and take a real interest in getting the best possible result for their clients. What particularly impressed me is their willingness to really understand the products that they put forward in their designs to the clients. They spend time researching to ensure that the designs are not only aesthetically beautiful but also highly functional and fit for purpose. Great team, I love working with them.

I engaged Gilly and the KouBou team to redesign my private dental practice patient areas. From the first meeting I felt I had picked the right company to work with. Gilly completely understood my brief and exceeded my expectations of what we could achieve with the space we had. Working with her and the contractors has been so easy it has been a pleasure. I would recommend KouBou Interiors highly for commercial Interior Design Work and I have no doubt that they would excel in the domestic setting too. Paula Buffham Park Lane Orthodontics Reading UK