Words: Rebecca Nottingham

They say the kitchen is the heart of the home so it’s rather touching that that’s exactly where Park House Kitchens originated.

Park House Kitchens was the brainchild of Trish Rowland who in 1992, after a successful career in direct kitchen sales, set up her first kitchen showroom in a derelict barn next to her home – Park House – in Slinfold, West Sussex.

“Having a kitchen showroom on the doorstep of our home was quite an alternative set up,” admits Park House director, Emily Rowland. “Especially as Mum [Trish Rowland] could often be found showing people around our family kitchen to give them even more inspiration.

“But it added to the charm and people just really seemed to relate to her. Her focus was very much on the whole process – designing the kitchen, managing the project from start to finish and focusing on the service and the experience. I feel like she was quite a trailblazer because back then, in a market full of direct sellers, this approach was quite unusual.”

Trish’s daughter Emily joined the company in 2009 after a corporate career in financial services marketing. She worked alongside Trish – learning the intricacies of kitchen design, project management and, of course, running a business – for the next five years until 2014 when Trish retired.

“Despite mum leaving the business and the move to a new location, 11 years on and we still get calls from people who bought kitchens from mum,” Emily recalls fondly. “So, this really is her legacy.”

Emily now runs the business herself with the help and support of office manager, Laura Tiller, assistant designer Katie Hay and head of installations, Sean Wibling. All of whom Emily describes as having “revolutionised the business”. 

“I was looking for a better work/life balance,” Emily explains. “I’d grown up around mum’s business and, because of that, I just naturally developed a passion for interiors and kitchens. 

“I did a three-month interior design course which was a solid introduction. Working with mum for the next five years – before she retired and I took the business on myself – was obviously the detailed part of my education. I really learnt a lot from her.”

When Trish retired, Emily made the difficult decision to move the company to new premises. Looking to replicate the homely feel of Park House, she settled on a small business park on an old farm in Ockley, Surrey.  

“The downside to having the kitchen business almost in your own home, is that you got less downtime,” Emily explains. “I felt quite strongly that, if I was going to run the business, I didn’t want it tied to mum’s house. But I knew the new location had to have that same homely feel as Park House because that’s one of the elements our customers loved so much.”

Expansion 

Continuing to put her own mark on the business, several years ago she expanded Park House Kitchens by not only taking over the converted outbuilding next door to the original showroom, but by introducing a second product offering as well. 

“We have been a loyal Callerton retailer for over 20 years and that relationship remains extremely strong,” Emily explains. “But after several
customer enquiries about in-frame kitchens, I decided to extend the product portfolio. 

“We work with a fantastic local joinery company who make everything to order in their own workshop. The in-frame offering sits really well alongside the Callerton product – the two options complement each other and offer our clients complete flexibility on budget as well as style and time frame.”

The showrooms are housed in beautiful beamed converted farm buildings. One features a host of Callerton displays that highlight the versatility of the range. The second showroom has deliberately been designed to look and feel like a home. In one section there is a spacious in-frame kitchen display with a huge island and bar.

This studio also features a boot room display, a utility and a dressing room to highlight the true scope of its partnership with the local cabinetmakers. 

“The second showroom was a huge investment of time and money, but it has really transformed the business,” she says. “Because of our relationship with the company that make our in-frame kitchens, we’re also able to offer anything cabinet-based really – like boot rooms, bars, media units and wardrobes which has really widened our appeal.” 

As well as her passion for kitchen design, Emily has clearly inherited her mum’s entrepreneurial spirit and is determined to continue to develop and grow the business.   

“As an independent sole business owner, I am incredibly proud of what we, myself and my team, have achieved,” she says. “It’s taken a lot of time and a significant investment, which has been scary at times but definitely worth it.

“I have a five-year plan in place to increase our revenue and profit year-on-year. And growing the additional product portfolio is a big part of that. The next stage of our development is to landscape the outside area between the two showrooms and introduce an outdoor kitchen display which will extend our product offering even further.

“Beyond that, the goal is to get the business to that point where Park House is the go-to destination for kitchens and cabinetry in West Sussex and Surrey. I want anyone thinking of buying a kitchen in this area to think ‘whatever we do, we have to see Park House first’.”