The blue tape blizzard...

I was going to add a comment to my 'arrogant' blog but this story deserves a blog of it's own.

About 6 years ago, I did a job with a client who is the top of the list of a-holes.
He described to the salesman everything he wanted for his new kitchen.
Let's say it was $100,000 and he didn't to pay that much.
He told the salesman his budget was $50,000.

Okay, the salesman told him to get to that price, substitutions and value-engineered design changes would have to take place. For example, select cherry was no longer being used. Sequenced grain match to the doors and drawer fronts wouldn't be done either. He agreed to those terms. We went to contract and drawings with specifications was prepared. He picked apart every facet of the details and disputed what he was getting. For example he insisted on select, sequenced grain and the stain & glaze finish to the back side of the doors to be equal to the face.
Again, the salesman brought up his budget. If he wanted select and matching grain the price would be different and he would have to sign a change order. He declined and we proceeded to fabricate.
The job had delays in the flooring. He rejected the materials and installation and the floor contractor had to do the floor again.

We delivered and installed. I inspected the work and it was excellent. It was the kind of project someone would put into their portfolio. The complaints started. Mis-matched grain, stain color unacceptable, cabinets not installed level, seams on the crown moulding were visible. The list was several pages. I hadn't been on the project in a week... it was beautiful, what could have gone wrong?

The installer said "Man, you won't believe what they did with blue tape"

Normally, clients and contractors use small pieces of blue tape to make a few spots that needed touchup or in a bad case a damaged door that needed to be replaced. It's expected to see 3, 4 maybe 5 pieces of tape.

I walked in and a 'blue tape blizzard' of easily 50 spots marked unacceptable.

The client backed up his story with a letter from his attorney and a statement from the General Contractor that it was the worst job he has ever seen. Remove all the doors and mouldings and replace them or he would sue. We did and he rejected them again. He had a meeting with his attorney and the owner of the company I was working for.

They agreed the client would pay the difference from regular cherry doors to select grade and we went a third round of door replacements. Weeks had passed and the clock was running out as the client had a deadline to move in or we faced paying his rent on the apartment we was staying at during the construction.

They never asked for my opinion, I was told order the select doors. I did and again he rejected half of the doors. I stopped and told the owner 'This guy is out for blood. There is nothing we can do to satisfy him' and we should have given him his money back after he rejected the 2nd round of replacements.

It went to court. Despite our multiple attempts to make this right, to my surprise, the judge sided in with the client. They settled for giving him nearly all of his money back.

All that time wasted trying to appease the client was stealing valuable materials and factory time we could have been working on profitable jobs.


This week, I dropped off samples to the same design firm I did that project with.
The office manager remembered me and the company I was working for at the time.
We agreed the client was an a-hole and the design firm actually did another project with him.
No different, the manager said. I'm told he rejected more than half of the work in his house and ended up suing many of the sub-contractors.