What started out as a commiserating lunch break at Fat Bob’s would soon turn into a four year long successful business partnership with no end in sight! There is no stopping Sean Wrafter and Keith Szczygiel, dynamic duo behind ACME Cabinet Company who have changed the game here in Buffalo when it comes to all thing’s kitchen cabinets and design.
Their beginnings started humbly, like most great stories do,
“Keith and I were working on a project together. Keith was a contractor, and I was making cabinets, and we decided to get lunch at Fat Bob’s. We were just talking about where we were at in our lives and with our businesses and where we both wanted to go. You know, a couple of phone calls later and we’re in a lawyer’s office forming an LLC together. That was four years ago,” says Wrafter.
Some might say this was fate written in the stars, but this story is nothing short of hard-work, perseverance, dedication, and the willingness to dream bigger than ever imagined. The team wasted no time in converting Wrafter’s old furniture store located in Allentown into a small showroom with only one line of cabinets. While this space and model was sufficient in getting their feet off the ground, after two years it became evident that they were on a fast track toward a booming success with bigger and better facilities just right around the corner. Thanks to a lead from a Buffalo Rising real estate listing, the team settled on and purchased a 3,500 square foot building in Kaisertown that now houses their seven-person team and showroom. The immaculate renovation of this building is just a glimpse at how tastefully this team works with design and execution. The showroom, located at 1848 Clinton Street, perfectly depicts the excellence this team is capable of, and ultimately plays a role in the revitalization of Kaisertown
“We love Allentown. We miss Allentown in many ways, but Kaisertown’s cool, and there’s some very interesting, very unique things going on here and besides being cool, it’s also super affordable. Before the pandemic, we had decided that we wanted to start telling all our friends who own businesses that they should stop renting and come down and start looking for something to buy down here. I think that’s really going to be part of our agenda for 2022,” says Wrafter.
In terms of mission, this small but mighty team has a dedication to customer satisfaction that truly goes unmatched. The entire design process is hyper focused around the customer’s wants and needs. What sets them apart is quite simple: the best service and design in the industry along with the most competitive pricing possible, highest standard quality and offerings varied both in aesthetic and price point.
“We wanted to start slow, concentrate on one thing, get really good at it and then keep it really simple. We don’t want to overwhelm people with a million options and all these ancillary things that people don’t really necessarily need. We just want to keep it simple for everybody,” shares Szczygiel.
While everything this team does is far from simplistic, the process they take to get the customer to their dream design feels just like smooth sailing.
Unlike other kitchen designers out there, we start a little bit backwards. We like to start at our customer’s home or property so we can see the space first and get some idea of what they want to do with it, and then take some measurements so we can create a design which also helps us give them a quote on everything they might need. From there, they come into the showroom, we go through it, make changes and if all goes well, they give us some money and we give them some cabinets. We try to make it really simple, and Keith is really good at keeping things streamlined, says Wrafter.
Behind the scenes of this entire process is a team that is passionate about making the client’s dream a reality. The employee atmosphere created by Wrafter and Szczygiel showcases what a healthy work life looks like, and it shows in the quality of work that is executed.
“We want to make sure that our employees are treated literally as well as we could possibly treat them. We try to offer as many benefits and amenities as we possibly can. Everyone works whatever hours that they need to work to get their work done. We want everyone to stay as happy as they possibly can so they can stay with us for the whole journey,” agreed the team.
Should a kitchen redesign be in your future, look no further than ACME Cabinet Company to have your thoughts and wishes not just heard but also valued. Their process goes above and beyond to ensure customer satisfaction and precision with every project. By treating each client like a neighbor, this team stays true to the “City of Good Neighbors” narrative that sets Buffalo apart from the rest.
“Almost every time I go out to dinner with my wife, we run into somebody that I’ve had business with and I’m not afraid to see them and say hello either,” say Szczygiel with Wrafter adding, “I want to be able to see all my customers at Wegmans and not duck down the next aisle. You know, we live in the neighborhoods that we sell these cabinets in and it’s important for us as owners to understand that local is accountable.”
With a 4-year track record of success, this team is just getting started. Stay tuned for some exciting announcements about expansions in 2022 that include new locations and even a second business dealing with home delivery services.
To find out more, or contact the team visit https://acmebuffalo.com.
