Mark Abril, merchandising manager for HPM Building Supply’s Kitchen and Bath Showroom, says that, after he or another designer has drawn out a kitchen design, they ask the homeowners to close their eyes and “walk through the kitchen.”

“If you’re standing in the kitchen, what will be on your right?” he says. “What will be in this drawer? What don’t you like about the kitchen you have now?”

“If you can take the homeowner from that two-dimensional drawing,” he says, “and make them visually walk through their home before it’s even built, then you know you’ve succeeded. In the end, they’re very confident and there are no surprises. They know exactly what they’re getting.”

HPM’s Kitchen and Bath Showrooms are located at 380 Kanoelehua Ave. in Hilo (808-935-0875), and at 74-5511 Luhia St. in Kailua-Kona (808-334-4200). Both are open Monday through Friday, from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Saturdays from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. A third showroom, in Waimea, is under construction and may be open by the end of the year.

People

Each Kitchen and Bath Showroom has three designers on staff. Abril has been with HPM for 25 years.

In Kona, the Kitchen and Bath Showroom supervisor is Martin Cabilin, who has been with HPM for 35 years. “We’re pretty experienced,” he says, “and really competitive on the pricing.” The Kitchen & Bath Showrooms also offer plumbing and lighting features.

Appliances

Abril points out that the trend now is for manufacturers to mimic a restaurant look to make people feel good about cooking. “I actually had someone say, ‘My husband doesn’t know how to cook,’ but after we designed it the husband became a great cook.”

He points out that a lot of owners want that look without the “professional-style” cost. “So along came Jenn-Air, who was able to copy the commercial look without the price tag,” he says. “They were also a pioneer with down-draft ventilation.” That’s where smoke, steam and odors are whisked down into the appliance and then out a low vent, instead of through an overhead hood. Jenn-Air also offers “suites” of appliances that match.

The Kitchen & Bath Showrooms also feature appliances from top names such as Sub-Zero, Wolf, Bosch, Whirlpool and KitchenAid.

Cabinets

HPM’s Kitchen and Bath Showrooms only offer cabinets made of solid wood, which is significant in Hawaii where weather often causes particleboard to deteriorate. “The difference in price between solid wood and ‘engineered wood’ is about 10 to 15 percent,” says Abril. “If you’re spending $5,000, it’s not that much.”

Also important, he says, is what’s inside the cabinet. “You can choose from pull-out shelves or full extension drawers, where, instead of only opening three-quarters of the way, it comes all the way out without falling out,” he says. “There is also a slow-close feature, so the cabinet door is never left open.” The Kitchen and Bath Showrooms’ main cabinet brands can be seen at pacificcrestcabinets.com, huntwood.com and dewils.com.

HPM started out as a small, family-owned lumber mill in Hilo more than 80 years ago. In addition to its Kitchen and Bath Showrooms, the company, which is now 100-percent employee-owned, currently has three full-service building supply centers and lumber yards, manufactures its own pre-engineered trusses, metal roofing and pre-hung doors, and treats its own lumber. It has recently expanded to Honolulu, where it serves Oahu, Maui and Kauai.