Episode114: Quality, Affordable, Modern Kitchen Cabinetry at Your Doorstep, with Kabinet CEO Timothy Roman

Written By Greg Villafana

Today Brad speaks with serial entrepreneur Tim Roman, Founder and CEO of Kabinet, a direct-to-consumer kitchen and bath cabinetry company. The firm ships quality, affordable, modern cabinetry directly to your doorstep without the showroom hassle, markups, or the middleman. Notably, Tim was featured in Gary Vaynerchuk’s book, Crushing It.

Since the outset of the pandemic in early 2020, the sales cycle has doubled as a result of delays and shortages in the supply chain, particularly when it came to Tim’s custom work.

With higher-end clients, there is typically a great deal of flexibility built into contracts, and so Tim’s challenge throughout the past couple of years has been to find creative ways to satisfy clients amid an unpredictable market.

Asked how he was able to find success with an eCommerce direct-to-consumer model for an industry known for its complexity, Tim says that it’s all about creating “a very fluid, very frictionless customer experience that mimics the likes of a traditional storefront experience. It actually has less friction and more convenience because you’re allowing the consumer to do it in their own time in their own home.”

Further, what sets Kabinet apart from all the rest is that Tim and his team refuse to be simple “order takers”. Every person on the other side of the line from a client is a bonafide designer, determined and passionate about turning the client’s vision into reality.

Brought to you by Pella Windows & Doors

Topics Discussed: 

  • [02:54] Tim’s experience with the supply chain in 2021

  • [08:27] How Tim was able to build an impressive network at a relatively young age

  • [14:14] All about Kabinet

  • [15:58] Why Tim went the eCommerce route instead of the traditional brick-and-mortar

  • [18:33] Making direct-to-consumer work with all the complexities of cabinetry

  • [25:49] How Tim has created a win-win situation between Kabinet and installers

  • [30:32] How Tim learned the ins-and-outs of business

  • [32:12] What keeps Tim up at night

  • [38:43] Working with investors vs getting a loan

  • [48:05] Kabinet’s advantage over its competitors

  • [52:07] How kitchen cabinetry is evolving

  • [54:22] Kabinet’s specialty

  • [59:57] The best advice business Tim has ever been given

  • [1:03:14] What’s next for Tim and Kabinet?

Key Quotes by Tim:

  • If you have a good network, you’re bailed out every single time… almost.

  • Cabinetry is very good margin if you can get a great system, a great funnel, a great client experience, and you’re aligned with a great factory that backs that process. It can be a really, really scalable business, and it’s only the upside in front of you.

  • I have a rule that, everyday, if I don’t learn something, it’s a failed day.

  • The money is actually not the hard part. Getting the money—especially these days in the United States where capital is so cheap—is not the hard part. The hard part is getting people that understand your goal and you obviously should be doing a good job at explaining it at the same time.

  • We know two things and we do them really well: kitchen cabinetry and customer service.

  • The name of the game, especially early on, is test, test, test, and the market is the market is the market.

Greg Villafana
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Episode 113: Kayleen McCabe: General Contractor, TV Host, Trades Advocate, Brand Ambassador, & Good for Morale