We were in search of a design-to-build firm with a good reputation and a quality portfolio. Through the recommendation of a friend, we found Arete. We had a full townhome reno, spanning 2 phases, and we worked with Arete for both. The ‘Arete way’ is a clear differentiator in comparison to the broken, many vendor, lack of communication experience most have. Davor and Ivana were able to guide us through the design and construction process – it was clear and concise. Bravo! Vasi is an interior designer gem. She dreamed up an impeccable design that felt like dreams could only imagine. Superb! Ned was our PM, the day-to-day glue that kept things moving. He was great. He was communicative, engaged, and informative along the way. Renovations bring a ton of stress, demand, and emotion.. so knowing that we could rely on Ned to ‘take care of it’ and guide us really put us at ease. Also, positive notes to the sub contractors. All of them were super pleasant and have a visibly strong relationship with Arete.
Our only critiques are that the design team needs to have a stronger presence throughout the project. It definitely felt like a handoff and it was rare to see them after. This was even more important when quick reno decisions needed to be made that impacted our original design. Also, much of the proposal pricing was summed in total which made it difficult to understand where the number came from and caused a lot of unnecessary questions.
Overall, we are super happy with the way our renovations turned out. Arete listened to our wants, curated a bespoke design, and brought it to life with quality, attention, and detail. Well done!
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