Listen to a full interview with Graham Johnston on a special episode of The kbbreview Podcast. Listen NOW using the player below or go straight to this episode in Apple Podcasts, Spotify or Youtube. Alternatively, simple search ‘kbbreview’ wherever you get your podcasts.

Graham Johnston is talking to kbbreview about the seemingly unrelated topic of laser eye-correction and is skilfully explaining how it compares to selling kitchens. 

This, in itself, illustrates perfectly both the diverse nature of his retail background and his articulate ability to explain his plans. It also undoubtedly sets up the perfect analogy for anyone writing an introduction to a feature about him.

“They’re both hugely considered purchases,” he explains. “Ultimately, the decision isn’t made because of clever marketing, it’s made because they trust the expertise of the optometrist sitting opposite them.”

He is now the owner of one of the best known names in Scottish independent kitchen and bathroom retail and this laser-focus on customer service as the ultimate USP means Johnston’s vision of the future for Kitchens International is crystal clear.

Founded in 1994, KI, as they usually refer to themselves, is a business with a premium heritage and reputation and nothing demonstrates this more than the impressive number of kbbreview Retail & Design Awards trophies on its shelves. These include Kitchen Retailer of the Year on no less than four occasions.

In 2021, it was bought by the James Donaldson Group, a business specialising in timber, construction and interiors and Johnston was appointed as CEO of the newly created Retail & Distribution division, which included KI. 

It’s not hard to see why, his CV is peppered with senior positions at big retail names like Asda, Three and, of course, Vision Express.

But now he has completed an MBO to buy KI for himself and with big plans for expansion, a promise to challenge conventions on kitchen retail and the really interesting appointment of an advisory board to help steer the company, it has once again become a true independent retailer to watch closely.

“Being independently owned simply gives us much greater freedom to invest where we think it’s right,” he says…

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Interview

Where do you enter the Kitchens International story?

It actually all started with a mystery shop. A few years ago I was being headhunted for a role at the James Donaldson Group and, as part of the process, I mystery shopped Kitchens International. At the time my wife and I were planning a major renovation, and that mystery shop ended up with us buying a KI kitchen.

Little did I know that a few years later I’d be buying the business as well. I joined the Donaldson Group in 2022 and when Gerry Watson, one of KI’s founders, began stepping back towards retirement, I was asked to take over the business and I probably ran KI for about a year before the conversations around a management buyout started. By then I’d got to know the business incredibly well and it really is a privilege to own it now.

What convinced you it was the right business to buy?

The customer experience was phenomenal, but what really struck me was the team. This is a business that’s been around for more than 30 years and there are people here who have grown up with the company. They’re incredibly passionate about the brand and that gave me huge confidence to take the business back into independent ownership. The enthusiasm from everyone has been amazing because they all see this as the start of a new chapter.

Why was now the right time for a management buyout?

One of the reasons Donaldson Group originally acquired KI was because of its contracts business. Like everyone else, that market faced significant headwinds after 2021 and, following a strategic review, the group decided to move away from that side of the market. What remained was fundamentally a retail business, and that no longer fitted the group’s overall direction. I felt very strongly that KI would flourish as an independent business, so I put my hand up and offered to do a management buyout. 

What changes now that KI is independent again?

Fundamentally it allows us to get back to our roots. We’re a design-led, people-focused luxury interiors business and now we can make decisions purely around what’s right for KI. We can move as quickly or as carefully as we choose without having to fit into the priorities of a much larger organisation.

That freedom means we’ve been able to announce ambitious growth plans almost immediately because this business deserves to reach more customers geographically. It also creates more opportunities for the people who work here and for the suppliers we’ve partnered with for many years. Being independently owned simply gives us much greater freedom to invest where we think it’s right.

You’re expanding at a time when plenty of retailers are being cautious. Why?

We’re actually seeing a really positive market. The luxury end continues to perform well and, importantly, customers are investing in much bigger projects than perhaps they were previously. We’re doing far more multi-room projects now, for example. Someone might come to us for a kitchen but then we’re designing the pantry, utility room, bedrooms and bathrooms as well.

Customers increasingly want one business to manage the whole project. Equally, this is a 32-year-old business, so customers who bought a KI kitchen 25 or 30 years ago are coming back. Sometimes they’re buying another kitchen in a new house but quite often they’re refreshing an existing kitchen because the cabinetry has stood the test of time and they simply want new doors, worktops or appliances.

Tell us about the expansion plans.

We’re opening a new showroom in Glasgow’s West End and another in Morningside in Edinburgh, alongside a new appointment-only design studio at Orwell Farm near Loch Leven. The Glasgow showroom is particularly important because KI has had a presence in the city for more than a decade so we wanted to stay there and, although we thought it might take a year or two to find the right location, the perfect site became available so we snapped it up.

In Edinburgh, the existing Dundas Street showroom remains our flagship, but Morningside allows us to reach another part of the city where we already do a lot of business. At first glance it probably looks like we’re doing a lot very quickly, but every decision has been made with sustainable growth in mind. Commercially they all make complete sense, and we’ve challenged every one of those decisions through our advisory board before committing to them.

You’ve spent most of your career outside the KBB industry. What do you think that experience brings?

I’ve always seen myself as a retailer first. I started on the shop floor selling mobile phones when I was 17 and, since then, I’ve worked across mobile retail, telecommunications, recruitment, optical, supermarkets and FMCG. People often assume the customers are completely different from one sector to another, but they’re not. They’re the same people, just on a different mission depending on where they are.

One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that innovation in one industry can usually be adapted to another. That was particularly true during my time leading omnichannel strategy at Three. Back then, most businesses had separate teams looking after retail, online and customer services, but customers don’t think like that. Customers don’t actually care about channels, they just want to deal with a business and the ones that succeed are those that allow customers to move seamlessly between digital and physical interactions without ever feeling they’re starting again.

So that’s something we’re applying at KI. A great website matters, digital communication matters, but so does having beautiful showrooms where customers can meet designers, touch materials and experience the product properly.

What’s the thinking behind the creation of an advisory board?

Because the worst thing any business leader can feel is comfort and I don’t want people around me who simply tell me everything is a good idea. I want people who’ll challenge me and this is a group of experienced people who are there to question our strategy and bring perspectives I simply don’t have. If something isn’t working, let’s stop doing it and find a better way, that’s how good businesses improve.

What does success look like over the next five years?

The next five years are about investing in our people. KI is a cherished Scottish brand that’s been around for more than 30 years, and I see myself as a steward of that brand for the next chapter. We’ve announced our immediate growth plans with new locations across Scotland, but those investments are really about creating opportunities for our people.

We’re focused on developing apprentices, creating career paths and making sure we’ve got the very best designers and installers in the industry. Alongside that, we’ll continue investing in digital technology to improve the customer experience, while making sure our physical showrooms remain places where customers can genuinely engage with our designers and our products. There are a few exciting projects that I can’t talk about just yet, but the direction is very clear.

We’re only six months into this next chapter but the foundations are in place, we’ve got a clear strategy and we’re building for the long term. For me, success isn’t just opening more showrooms. It’s about making sure Kitchens International continues to be recognised as one of Scotland’s leading luxury kitchen businesses for the next 30 years.