By Sharon Edelson
The U.S. was beginning to come out of the coronavirus pandemic last spring when the Delta variant began rearing its head. While precautions have so far been limited to re-masking in some areas, it remains to be seen whether further steps will be necessary. For Eric Goranson, CKD, radio and TV personality, DIY expert and construction educator based in Portland, Ore., demand never waned during the health crisis. Goranson navigated the pandemic with aplomb, creatively dealing with shortages and supply-chain challenges, catering to his customers’ needs while pivoting slightly when necessary.
He took a few minutes to share his experiences and best practices with the NKBA.
What strategies implemented during COVID-19 are going to stick around, post-pandemic?
The pandemic started early for me. I was giving a seminar in March [2020] to designers and contractors. I showed up at the hotel, and the next day, I got a text saying, “You have to be out by tomorrow because we’re closing.”
The demand was there all along. We had more product availability issues, like everybody else, but demand didn’t stop.
I think there’s some strategies and trends that will be around for a while. Clients are busy. Everyone’s busy. Even though people don’t like Zoom meetings, we’ll see more remote design meetings because clients don’t want to take two hours off in the middle of the day and drive across town to meet you. I actually closed my showroom two years ago because realized I wasn’t using it. Ninety-five percent of my business has always been meeting in the client’s home, where they’re the most comfortable. When I had 13 designers working for me, it was a sample storage area. Those big displays cost a lot in profits.
NKBA research as well as anecdotal evidence shows that remodeling projects are hotter than ever – what’s different about the jobs you’re seeing coming through now than before the pandemic?
There are two sides to the question of remodeling now or waiting. Maybe you’re not going to remodel because you’re not entertaining as much due to the pandemic, but you’re not going to Bali, either — and you’re tired of the look of your house.
Over the last 20 years, everyone wanted this grand open concept, now they’re talking about how to make rooms quieter. [They want to know] how to make it so we can have Zoom meetings and how to control sounds. We’re seeing the expansion of outdoor living spaces, but also bedrooms and offices. The home office stuff has slowed down a bit as people figure out whether they’ll have the ability to work from home, long-term. I’ve seen some tech companies say, “You’re all going to come back to the office.” I live in Portland and there are plenty of businesses out here that instead of saying, “You’re coming back to the office,” they’re saying, “We’re going to get out of our office lease.”
What are the most challenging impacts of the supply-chain delays on your business, how far out are you, and how are you working around the delays?
Cabinetry hasn’t been so bad. I’m happy that I don’t do construction. Tile and appliances have been tough. Appliance companies will tell you that it’s going to be here on Thursday, then on Wednesday night when they’re confirming delivery, they’ll call and say it won’t be here for four months. You scramble and go in a completely different direction. Those challenges are still there. As soon a one thing goes back to normal, another thing goes away. I was trying to track paint for somebody. A major paint store didn’t have any flat paint at all — in any color. I’m talking to a major manufacturer of outdoor kitchens and they said they expect to go into 2022.
What were some of your favorite projects this year?
My favorite projects this year were the projects I wanted to do in my own house — my own kitchen, bath and outdoor kitchen. For some reason, I’ve never worked on my own projects. I didn’t want to deal with that after working all day on other peoples’ homes. I worked during the entire COVID-19 pandemic on my own home. I got to do it my way, and didn’t start until all the materials came in, which delayed my bathroom by six months. It was a nice change, and that’s been the most fun. This was the first time in 30 years that I did work on my own house.
What projects are you looking forward to, and what types of projects will be in demand?
I’m going to go into this next year with three or four projects for previous clients and friends and family. I’m having such a blast doing the radio and all [the other media], it’s just a new challenge. In 2018 and 2019, I started hitting that burnout. I was doing 40 to 50 large projects per year, and it was starting to take its toll. By the time 2019 rolled around, the radio/podcast business was grown enough and I knew it would take more of my time. I was done dealing with overloaded workloads with clients.
There’s a lot of demand out there. Kitchens and bathrooms will always be popular. We’ll also see more people dive into healthy living. For example, when people are installing heating and cooling systems, they’re putting in air scrubbers that continually and completely cleanse the air and kill anything in the air, including mold and viruses.
About Eric Goranson, CKD
Goranson started his career in Seattle in the early Nineties, designing kitchens and bathrooms for homeowners. He took architecture and design classes in community college, but didn’t get serious about design until 1999, when he went to work for Eagle Hardware & Garden, which was eventually purchased by Lowe’s. In 2000, he moved to a high-end showroom. Four years later, Goranson began working with distressed cabinet shops and showrooms, helping them turn their struggling businesses around. Goranson started his own company in 2009, growing it to become the largest design firm in Seattle. He moved to Portland in 2011 and started another design firm. Now, Goranson cohosts the podcast “Around the House with Eric G and Caroline B” on the Sun Broadcast Group, is a TV personality, DIY expert and construction educator. Along the way, he’s designed some 1,000 kitchens; was a Kitchen & Bath Design News Top 50 Innovator for 2019, and served on the Baldwin Hardware Design Council from 2017 to 2019.
