Gilbert Design Build

They had one worker who was doing all the work and he was excellent. The owner went on a cruise and the guy who's managing the project could not do anything without his okay. He needed his okay to quote prices, to add additional work and for just about anything. But the guy's on a cruise. We had asked about, for instance, a new one piece toilet that we were buying. He kept saying he had it. When it came in, it was a two piece and he said it wasn't on his list, that he didn't write it down. It was just different things like that. I decided to have them paint the bathrooms while they were here, and I wanted it painted before they continued on the remodel, so this guy came back with a ridiculous price for two small bathrooms. It was $800. So I told him he needed to go back and rework that because it was too high. And he said he couldn't, because the owner was out on his cruise. So I went and got my own painter to come in here and I got more stuff in my house painted and at a cheaper price, at $600. It took them about a month to get in here and about two or three weeks to finish it. But there were a lot of things to get done. The above review was done over the phone so I am writing another one to clarify my pros and mostly cons with this company. I would like to respond to the Dream Makers remarks on my review of their work in my home. When we started this process with Ernest (the owner) everything was done verbal between him, a designer, my wife and I. During the process Ernest keep saying the words ?change order? this and ?change order? that. At the end of two or three meeting (don?t remember how many there were) he presented us with a written contract. We reviewed it at his office, signed it, and gave him our starting deposit. Our concern at that time was the price more than the specific content of the contract. I made sure the overall contract was correct for the replacement of main cabinets, sinks, one toilet, flooring and hardware in both bathrooms. Mirrors, medicine cabinets, cabinets over the toilet would have to be chosen later. All pictures and conversation in our home was done with Ernest. My wife asked to meet with the designer or a designer at our home and was denied for whatever reason. My wife had to make two trips to their office to meet with the designer. When we were informed that our items had come in and they were ready to start the job, I called Ernest and asked him to make sure the Project Manager (PM) would meet with me to discuss the project on the day it started. He informed me that his PM should have already called me and if he didn?t he would make sure he did. His PM called me that night and we meet the next day to walk through the job. I typed up a step by step project list for us to walk through when he came over the next day. At that time I informed the PM that painting of the bathrooms was not on the original contract but that I had mentioned it to Ernest on several occasion. The PM told me since it was not on the original contract that it would have to be a change order in order for them to do it. I said fine. All the items came in and were delivered to my garage. The PM returned with a change order for the painting in the amount of $800 and would have to be paid for up front which I refused to do. The PM told me he would have to speak with Ernest on the payment of change orders. I went ahead and signed it at that time so as to not hold up the project. Since the price was so high I called a well-known painter in the area and asked him to quote the approximate square footage of the bathrooms just to paint it, as I was providing the paint for the job, and he quoted $200. He unfortunately was too busy to do the job at that time so I hired another local painter in the area and he did it for $600 but we also included the master bedroom and two walk in closets for that price of $600. I called the PM that evening or the next morning, told him the price was too high and to asked him to re-quote the price to paint the bathrooms. He told me he would have to speak with Ernest and that Ernest was on a cruise so it might take a while to get a hold of him. I canceled the change order and informed him that I would hire the painter. It was around that time that I noticed the new toilet was a two piece toilet and that my wife had asked for a one piece. I spoke with the PM and he said that what was on the contract. I review the contract and it was on there but by manufactures part number. It wasn?t until I looked it up on the website site that I found out it was a two piece instead of a one piece. I asked him to contact Ernest and discuss it with him and he told me Ernest was hard to get a hold of and that any change would have to be through a change order. I told him to forget it and took care of it through my Plummer for $100. (We traded a new one piece for the new two piece in a box.) What put me over the edge about Dream Makers was the fact that after the job was completed and final payment was made I was ask/forced to write a good review on another website before they would do any repairs that should have been taken care of. I felt like a gun was put to my head just so I could get the repairs made. OBSERVATIONS AND OPINIONS: Ernest does not trust his managers or management to make decision in his absents which is just bad business practice pure and simple. Example: My wife had to go to your shop twice to speak with the designer because the designer was not allowed or didn't want to come out to our home to speak with us concerning design issues my wife was having. As for change orders it is standard business practices to collect payments for those change orders at the time the final payment is made. My main disappointment was the fact that PM could not make a decision without Ernest?s (the owner) approval to dispute the price of the painting and the payment of the change order because Ernest was on a cruise and out of contact. This means the job would have been held up or the painting would have been done later and half assed because you would had to paint around all the mirrors and cabinets on the walls. Overall the PM did a good job of managing the project and if I were Ernest I would have more faith in his Managers decision making abilities. The man who did all the actual work was a jack of all trades and did a wonderful job on our bathrooms. I would highly recommend him.

We're really enjoying the new year in our new kitchen. We converted a two-level counter into a single-level, giving us miles of granite on which to roll out dough and make scratch pizzas. We make a lot of bread - the neighbors love us! The Dream Maker team was great to work with from conception to cleanup. The only minor problem was some missed connections with my project manager, actually missed phone calls. Can't really complain at all, the whole thing was done start to finish in two weeks! You can't beat that.

If you want a quality end-result and good experience, I'd highly recommend DreamMaker. We had a full kitchen renovation and it turned out as nice as we'd hoped. We enjoyed working with all members of their staff, from the owner Ernest through the designer Jennifer, onsite manager Bob, and all other workers. They did a nice job helping us make smart design choices, effectively using their showroom and design software to do so, and they explained the cost options and implications for all choices. (Also, they were very accommodating and made special arrangements to work with us after-hours a couple times, for our scheduling convenience, which was much appreciated!). They had a project backlog at the time we signed our contract, and were honest about the time it would to get the project completed, and were pretty much true to the original time frame estimate they had given. During the project, Bob clearly communicated how things were progressing and what the expected schedule was for completing individual tasks. Also, Bob and the individual workmen such as the cabinet-carpenter Jimmy were committed to providing the best end-product, and made several corrections/tweaks at their own option/cost, to deliver the highest-quality end product. For instance, a granite windowsill had come in just slightly under-measured, and DreamMaker ordered a completely new one rather than working around a relatively minor issue. We really appreciated their desire to make things top-notch rather than just meet minimum specifications!

All employees, subs, etc. were friendly and provided good workmanship. The manager of the project was communicative, was receptive to me contacting him as needed and kept the project on time. There are always issues on every construction job, this was no exception but they handled any issue that came up, promptly and efficiently with a smile on their face. The end result is gorgeous! I would definitely recommend using DreamMaker Bath and Kitchen and would use them again for another project!

There were two major boo-boos on the design part made either by the cabinet company or the person that measured the exsisting kitchen, (so check the final layout VERY closely) however between myself and the dreammakers project manager and owner , both issues were resolved to my satisfaction. Everything else went well. All the workers were very pleasant and knew what they were doing. The carpenter was excellent with ideas to correct some minor issues and was the tile guy. My kitchen was not an easy job as it is all angles and corners. I was home thru most of the project and that helped me to make sure it was done the way I wanted. I have given their name to numerous people in the neighborhood recommending them.

Not at all well. Despite being more expensive than other estimates we went with Dreammaker thinking their specialty with kitchens would be an advantage. Firstly from the time we gave them a 50% deposit until they actually started the work was 2 months! That was after waiting a month for them to give us an estimate.The owner, Ernest, never gave any indication it would take so long. He just said his construction manager would contact us. Bob, the construction mgr. Was not good at communicating. I had to constantly call him as he not once contacted me first. I also had to call him sometimes several times for him to call me back. He was not on top of his paperwork. We could not initiate work without our prior signature which he would forget to give us, delaying all the work.it took 7weeks to complete a rather small job. Bob only came to the house one time once the work began. He did not oversee any of the work nor the final product. On the several occasions I tried to contact Ernest, he never took my call and had his receptionist follow up. While the quality of the workmen was excellent(which is why I'm giving them a C instead of an F), the experience with this company was beyond awful. This is the 6th kitchen remodel I have had done over the years and by far the worst.

We are so happy with our new kitchen counters! The island had a high bar and the back of it was bead board. We decided to have it cut it down to counter height in order to create more room between the counter and the kitchen table. And we hoped to have a granite countertop on the island large enough so that we could bring in barstools for extra seating. We also wanted to replace the planning desk with a granite countertop. The computer renderings really helped us see that we could have all our wishes with a free form granite countertop. The hard part now for us was selecting a granite that complemented our kitchen. The owner, Ernest was a joy to work with and the foreman, Bob Meehan, was so helpful in making sure the granite shape was correct. He was at our house when the template was made and was not convinced so he went back to the granite workshop to make sure the shape was correct. He told us that he actually stood on top of the granite slab so that he could look down at the shape that they were cutting. The work was completed while we were away for several months so Bob emailed us several pictures. When we returned, we were ecstatic with the new look. The electrical and plumbing work was first rate as well. The house was clean (in fact DreamMaker actually brought in a professional cleaning company), the granite was installed perfectly and the look was exactly what we wanted. Thank you DreamMaker for caring so much. We are so pleased that we are hiring them to do another project.

Professional. Set clear expectations. Delivered to the expectations. The design team did a fantastic job of reading our tastes and guiding us through decisions. We would not have come close to the design detail without their professional guidance. Our manager was engaged, professional, and made sure that everything was delivered on schedule and with quality. He continued to engage us throughout the project to make sure that our needs were met - and they were. Looking at the finished product, there's not one thing that we would do differently, if we had the chance. Bottom line. Top shelf quality, professionalism, and the assurance that your in good hands.

We recently had my mother move in with us due to health reasons. In our second bathroom was a tub/shower combination. Mom would not be able to get into the tub to take a shower. We hired Dreammakers to remove the tub and just have a shower. We met first at their studio, looked at all the tiles and features they had to offer. There was so much to look at. We told them the amount we were looking to spend and they helped us stay within our budget. The work that was done: tub removed, shower stall placed, tiled from floor to ceiling and new tile on bathroom floor. Also sliding doors on the shower. Plumbing had to be moved so that the shower would drain well. One small thing that impressed my wife was that they knew that in the city of Bradenton there was a permit needed. They were very professional and kept the surrounding areas as clean as possible. We would highly recommend them.

Having relocated to Florida from Pennsylvania in the fall of 2013, we downsized to a smaller house in a golf community for our retirement years. The house offered us a view we desired, but the kitchen and baths needed a facelift. As we explored our options, we became overwhelmed by the many businesses in the Sarasota-Bradenton area that advertise kitchen and bath remodeling. We are so grateful to have met a representative of the FL Dept. of Business & Professional Regulation at one of the home and garden shows we attended. He explained to us that many of the businesses who advertise remodeling services do NOT use licensed contractors. He encouraged us to contract with a licensed contractor, a person who has taken the time to acquire the appropriate education, the proper workers' compensation and/or liability insurance and who possesses the necessary experience. We also met Ernest Gilbert, President of DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen, at the same home and garden show. We were immediately impressed with his professionalism and presentation of ways his business could support our plans for a remodel. He also enthusiastically provided documentation to verify his contractor's licensure. A followup appointment at our house was scheduled to discuss our vision in more detail. Coinciding with our discussions with Ernest, we met with contractors from other businesses also recommended on Angie's List to discuss our kitchen remodel plans, and we quickly realized that DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen would best fit our design project. The new showroom where DreamMaker holds its design conferences offers state-of-the-art software with 3-D technology for allowing the customer to visualize prospective designs. We found this extremely helpful as we made decisions relative to the placement of cabinets (some specialty), drawers and stainless steel appliances. In addition to the contractor's expertise, a designer affiliated with DreamMaker offered her suggestions in creating a kitchen that would provide the ambience in addition to the functionality we were seeking. Once our selection of cabinetry, granite, ceramic tile backsplash, grout color, sink, hardware, recessed and under-cabinet lighting were made, an order was placed. We were impressed that DreamMaker does not inconvenience the customer and begins construction only when the supplies ordered have arrived. For our project, the tentative starting date became the actual date demolition of our outdated kitchen began. While the kitchen project took approximately five weeks to complete, we traveled out-of-state for most of the work period and felt very comfortable with leaving our house while the demolition and construction phases were completed. Project Manager Bob Meehan kept us apprised of the process and any issues which needed to be addressed while we were gone. We were pleasantly surprised to return home prior to completion of the project to find a job site in order and with minimal construction debris. In fact, we were impressed to see that extra measures had been taken by the work crew to protect other areas of our house from the dust and debris, including an antique grandfather clock considered a family heirloom. The work crew assigned to our project was hard-working, pleasant and all seemed to really care about their work. In fact, we noticed their attention to detail was impeccable. There were a few quality control issues from some of the suppliers, but the DreamMaker crew didn't sacrifice quality for an easy fix or getting the job done. They re-ordered those items that were not the quality expected. We have no regrets or disappointments and our new kitchen exceeds what our minds envisioned. DreamMaker certainly lived up to its name!!! We highly recommend DreamMaker for any remodeling project and now have plans to have them update two bathrooms and a laundry room.

Our bathtub was in bad shape. I wanted to have it re-glazed and my husband wanted a tub liner. Neither of us would give. Finally after 3-years I gave up. In the past when we have been on vacation I have used showers and tubs which have the liners and everyone of them had some type of 'give' when stepped in. When Mr. Gilbert of DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen came out to measure I told him of my concern and he guaranteed the liner he would install would not be like that. My husband made arrangements to have it done and I have to admit the result is beautiful. Just like Mr. Gilbert promised it has a tight fit with no give when stepped on. In fact, our original tub had a design on the side so it was not smooth. The liner also has the same design. The installers were fantastic because there wasn't a mess nor any debris left behind when they left. My only regret, it was not done years ago.

I am a single snow bird and own a small condo in Florida. To accommodate guests I wanted to replace the tub with a walk-in shower for safety purposes. Not knowing anyone in the area, I visited a home show where I asked a lot of questions. Rather than a sales pitch the crew from DreamMaker asked me questions and offered to come to the condo and evaluate the issues. Before they arrived I checked Angie?s List and found great reviews. They arrived when scheduled, listened some more, measured and took pictures of the bathroom and other rooms so that they would better understand my living and decorating style. The following week I went to their showroom to have a design consultation and review the possibilities, select fixtures and other materials. Once we agreed on the final project and went to contract everything was submitted to the building department for a permit. I left Florida and went up north for the summer and never felt concern for the people or work being done in my absence. DreamMaker kept me informed during the entire process with phone calls and pictures. Upon my return, the bathroom was spotless, nicer than expected and made the other bath look really dated. In fact it was so nice that I immediately asked that they repeat the process in the master bath. Ernest began measuring, taking pictures and offering suggestions. With my budget in mind, the design team figured out how to enlarge the shower, reposition a sliding door, create matching furniture and get ceiling lights. As I handed over my final payment there were no surprise charges. I was so eager for my bathroom to come to life, that I told them at the last decision meeting ? ?I?m sorry that I don?t have another bathroom to remodel. The process and the results have been fun.

All good! Work began on 9/16 and on 10/2 we were reloading our kitchen cabinet and drawers. Our kitchen looks absolutely beautiful and now the kitchen is so much more functional. All of the craftsmen were top-notch, can't say ENOUGH about the great carpentry that went into this. The workmen brought us into the loop anytime a decision needed to be made, and as we said, two weeks from demo to new kitchen. That's pretty awesome, we've been through other kitchen re-makes that took forever. We are very happy with Dream Maker, and would recommend them to others.

When owner Ernest Gilbert came to the house to give me an estimate, he impressed me that he really wanted to give me MY dream kitchen, working within my budget, and without his own agenda. (As opposed to some other companies who wanted to do what THEY wanted.) He required a deposit of $400.00 before going any further, making sure I understood that this was NONrefundable. After several more meetings with him, I backed out and, as promised, he would not refund the deposit. I was so naive I did not realize his company would have certain products available to chose from, as displayed in their showroom. They had many lovely products but not the linoleum (Marmoleum) flooring I wanted. They tried to talk me into their products. My daughter stopped them several times to say, " Look, this is HER kitchen! You need to listen to what SHE wants, not what you want!" They list that they are an eco-friendly company but had never heard of the most environmentally friendly flooring available (according to my internet research). At one point I thought I could have them do all but the flooring but even so the price was much too high; at $30,000 (only cabinets and counters, no appliances) it was at least $10,000 higher than other estimates. Plus, after all our miscommunicaton, I just got a sick feeling whenever I entered their business.

Build a room addition on my home and installed nice oak cabinets in my dinning room and counter tops. They were very polite ,work was finished on time with nice clean up. Mr. Gilbert was there and made sure everything was perfect. We will use again to remodel our bathrooms.

After two meetings and $1,000 for initial design work we met a third time to review the design. The design was a computer generated floor plan without design elements and the designer hadn't seen it. We were then asked to pick out cabinet door types, colors and surfaces. The designer left before the meeting was over without saying goodby. After three meeting and $1,000 we hadn't made any progress. Very nice owner but unfortunately zero results and $1,000 wasted.

We had researched several companies and decided upon this one after meeting Mr. Gilbert. His rating on Angie's list and his claims of attention to detail and thoroughness were what sold us. We were not disappointed. We met with a designer -Beth- and with Mr. Gilbert and planned for the bathroom remodel back in September. Both were exceptionally knowledgable and patient. Mr. Gilbert would not start construction until all the parts were ordered and delivered. Because we were not there full time, he worked around our schedule. The end result in the bathroom was beautiful. When he came to see if we were satisfied at the completion of the project, we complimented the workmanship and the overall design. We expressed how delighted we were on the results. I commented on the color of the sash by the shower but had no expectation that it would be replaced, nor did I demand it. Nevertheless, unbeknownst to us, he actually removed the installed shower door and replaced the sash with a color that was an exact match for the rest of the design. This is a perfect example of how Mr. Gilbert protects his reputation and the good name of his company. He simply didn't like the way it looked so he remedied it. This is what sets him apart from the pack. Once we saw the bathroom, we knew we would use his company for the kitchen remodeling. We went through the same process. He worked within our budget and again assisted with the design. He took care of every item on the punch list. And as before, some were brought to our attention before we noted them. Midway through the project, Mr. Gilbert hired a foreman. Bob was attentive, thorough, and conscientious. We were able to contact Bob at any time when we had questions. The kitchen is now fabulous. If we did not like the way something looked, it was rectified. Bob saw to every detail. It is a wonderful experience to deal with a company who has customer satisfaction as a primary objective. We plan to use the company again to remodel another bathroom. I know We won't be disappointed.

The project went very well. Our health problems caused several delays and Dreammaker responded as true pro's should ! Thanks to all of the Dreammaker Team. Richard & Helen

Everyone was professional, courteous and genuinely wanted us to be completely satisfied. They really woked hard to complete the job in the timeframe I needed.

I have heard from many people that this company provides the best service and results.

I was riding my bike down a very nice street and saw a yard sign announcing a remodel by DreamMaker Bath & Kitchen. It was a really nice house and I thought "these guys must be good". We wanted to redo our bathroom, so we called and started the process. The owner, Ernest, came to look over our space and take measurements. No hard sell, thoughtful questions and the offer to help with design. Okay, on to the next step. We had two meetings with Ernest and his designer, and they took us from a germ of an idea to a really creative approach. Working with our needs and tastes they came up with a super design. We were out of town during construction and when we came back there were a few punch list items, as always. Most of them were fixed quickly and satisfactorily. One was particularly vexing and required a few extra passes to determine the problem. I am happy to report that despite the fact that payment had been made in full DreamMaker was not satisfied until we were. All issues were resolved and we couldn't be happier with the end result. I've done plenty of remodeling and I can tell that not all contractors are responsive once they've been paid. DreamMakers is a professional, ethical business that delivers a beautiful, quality product. Next year, the kitchen.

Before hiring DreamMaker for my remodeling, I got two other estimates for the job which were around the same ballpark, but a few things were left 'to be determined' which ended up raising the costs, but most were unavoidable. As it is when one hires a contractor to monitor a job rather than doing it oneself, the costs will reflect that and that was something I had to adjust to since I am used to running projects myself. I would say his costs were similar to other contractors in the area. They have a professional set up with their own showroom and Ernest creates a computer-generated rendition of what the finished product will look like which is very helpful. He also has an in-house designer who did come up with a good idea for cabinet configuration in the master bath and is there to make suggestions for those who may be lacking in design finesse. They have several items and catalogs that they like you to look through which is helpful, but when I decided upon a tile that I picked out on my own which required shipping fees from Canada, he was compliant with my request. All of the subcontractors I met were very professional. The project took a bit longer than anticipated, but in the end I was able to move in with most of the job already having been completed and with it having been surprisingly immaculate prior to my arrival. There were a few hiccups along the way, but I have yet to complete a project without such things arising and I tend to be very picky. Overall, the place looks wonderful and everyone who has seen it has said such. I would recommend DreamMaker to others wishing to remodel with the advice to have everything planned out ahead and in the contract to help keep costs under control, and to have an estimated completion date in the contract. Overall, I was very satisfied and may hire them for my next project.

The kitchen cabinets were updated, and both cabinets and drawars were refaced with Maple fronts. Numerous other changes were suggested and implemented, resulting in a more efficient kitchen! | |The entire experience with DreamMaker was top-notch from the start. The |work ethic of the crew was exceptional, and we plan on remodeling our master bath utilizing the same crew! They were real professionals and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this company to my friends.

Ernest was professional during both meetings. We are not ready to renovate at the moment, but would strongly consider his company.

They made a point to do the remodle quickly due to only having one bathroom. He did work very hard to work with in my budget.