california closets
When it comes to home organization, the gold standard is California Closets. A solution for just about every storage situation in your home is their expertise, giving a trendy and high-end feel.
customizing
“We try to target our product and pricing to the person that we’re working with,” said Ron Young, who along with wife, Ana Young, have owned the local California Closets franchise since 1997. “We’ve put inexpensive closets in mobile homes and very, very expensive closets in huge custom homes and everywhere in between. The process is basically to take a look at the space you have available for a custom closet and what you can put in a custom closet.” That, of course, is just the beginning of the process, however. Many questions go into the design of the closet, Young added, because the more
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large company offers trend, organization and luxury to any home in new mexico By glen rosales / homestyle writer
knew enough about working for yourself that franchising was a good way to be more successful.”
Then it became a process of elimination. “We looked at companies with franchising available in Albuquerque and crossed off all the ones that were too expensive or that required seven days a week, 24-hours-a-day,” Young added. “What was left is a pretty small list and California Closets was on that list.” Although neither of the Youngs had any specific background in what the company did, it does a great job in giving you everything you need to know to come up that learning curve very quickly, he said. “They assist with marketing and endless recommendations about procedures and materials.
how it All started
My background was manufacturing, and California Closets allows you to manufacture locally.” Having the ability to manufacture pieces locally not only helps keep costs down, but also to maintain quality control, Young said. It was a big factor in helping the local franchise weather the economic downtown. “That aspect of the opportunity was attractive and that helps us be competitive,” he said. “I attribute our ability to survive the great depression; being 100 percent in control of those factors.
If we had been in debt or dependent on other people to produce for us coming and going, I’m not so sure we would have because we were lean, mean and in control of every aspect of our product cycle. We were able to manage the tough times in 2008 and 2009 and continue to move forward and provide the quality and customer service that people have come to expect.”
what they offer
What works in closets is also a boon elsewhere in the house, as California Closets has a system for virtually every room in the house, except for kitchens and baths. “Having room available for closets and storage is becoming more important as time goes on,” Young said. “The home office, pantries, garage cabinets. Wall beds or Murphy beds. Pretty much anything else that’s storage in the home. Mud rooms, all those kinds of spaces.” And it’s an easy way to add value to a home while helping it become more organized, he said. “As far as home improvement, it’s one of the easier home improvements you can ever tackle,” Young said. “Regardless of who you are, you start every day in your closet. If it’s pile of rubble and difficult to find things, it starts your day off on a bad note.”
With exclusive New Mexico territory, California Closets has been from Taos to Las Cruces installing organizational upgrades, which is a bonus for the state “It’s not available anywhere else,” Young said. “If you didn’t have the opportunity to visit our showroom in Albuquerque, the next closest place was Denver or Phoenix. To have that available in a town the size of Albuquerque is an opportunity for someone that is interested in doing this work in their home should take advantage of.” Seeing people’s faces when the project is complete is an added bonus. “It’s rewarding because when we’re finished, people are happy with what we’ve done for them,” Young said. “Once you have custom closets in your house, there’s just no going back. It helps you be more organized, it creates a space for where things belong and it helps you organize yourself personally.”