MIDDLEBURY, VT — Connor Homes may very well be leading a design revolution.

This is appropriate, says Mike Connor, because the firm – a general contractor that specializes in historic architectural design and construction – usually designs spaces reminiscent of the American Revolution.

Connor, founder and CEO of the firm, explains: “There’s a tremendous interest on the part of the public to live in a house that feels like an old house. However, many people don’t want to have to deal with all of the hassles associated with a truly old house.”

Driven by customer demand and a willingness to explore more transitional looks, the firm expanded its services to include custom kitchen and bath cabinet design.

“Recognizing that kitchen cabinetry and design for today’s market is an architectural departure from what would be found in a period home, we wanted to embrace all of the modern functionality of a contemporary kitchen while still maintaining an architectural sensitivity to the character of the home in which the new kitchen would be installed,” Connor stresses.

That thinking led the firm to start making cabinets for its general contracting business clients about 10 years ago. “At that time, we were looking for cabinetry that was compatible with the historic architectural character of the new homes we were building,” Connor explains.

The decision to expand its services several years ago to include custom kitchen and bath cabinetry is now paying dividends for the firm.

“When the recession hit, we had to scale back like many others did. However, we have certainly done okay during the recession compared with some other companies,” he says.

Specifically, the firm expects to finish this year with close to 40 houses designed, not far off from its pre-recession pace.

“In fact, our thought now is that it’s time to really start growing again,” he adds.

“Our primary clientele for kitchen cabinets is the buyer of our homes, although we occasionally build cabinetry for others,” Connor explains. “However, as we are asked more and more to produce our cabinetry for an ever-widening customer base, we anticipate that we will focus on making our cabinetry available to other consumers.”

CABINET CHALLENGE

After nearly four decades as a historic architectural builder, Connor admittedly found the prospects of cabinet design somewhat challenging at first.