Owl Homes

Background

Owl Homes is a privately-owned and forward-thinking housebuilder with big plans for future growth. Specialising in the design, specification and construction of sustainable, high quality residential properties, Owl Homes is currently working on major developments in Rugby, Walsall Woods, Hilton, Polesworth and Upton Snodsbury.

Aspirational design

The housebuilder prides itself on developing homes that people aspire to live in, and its ethos is to provide practical designs which incorporate the latest contemporary trends.

As modern living styles are changing all the time, the Owl Homes’ team was keen to refresh its shower, bathroom and kitchen specifications for its latest development projects so senior buyer Chris Wood approached Bristan to see what they had to offer.

Chris said: “I had worked with Bristan products in a previous role, and had been impressed with the quality of the company’s offer, so I invited them to come along and present a variety of tap and shower options. What they came back with was a 30-page presentation which showcased all the different styles and trends they could offer us and an idea of how they could work across different specification budgets.”

Best and better options

Owl Homes has a standard specification for its two-, three-, four- and five-bedroom houses but many of the fittings – including the bathroom fixtures – can be upgraded to a premium option. This meant that for almost every product type, Bristan needed to deliver a standard and an upgrade specification.

Chris continued: “Having the upgrade options was really key for us, as we knew that if we could source all our requirements from a single supplier it would make life much easier all round. Our sub-contractors would only need to go to one merchant, there would only be one point of contact for any issues and one number to call for spares.

The shower specification was driven primarily by product aesthetics, “We chose the Frenzy bar shower as the standard spec as it’s a nice looking shower. Our upgrade option is the Vertigo, which offers a real wow factor with its large shower head and angular styling.”

Top taps

To keep things simple, all Owl Homes will be fitted with Bristan’s Glide basin mixer and bath filler taps. Available in luminance chrome to match the shower spec, the versatile design of the Glide taps complements both the Frenzy and Vertigo showers.

Bristan products have also been specified for the Owl Homes kitchens. Chris said: “The kitchen is the focal point of the house for many people, so getting the look and feel right in there is essential to selling our properties. We’ve gone with the Cherry sink mixer as our standard specification as it has a sleek, designer finish yet is still affordably priced. Our upgrade spec is the Champagne which has a fluted spout and pointed handle which really makes it stand out.”

Easy installation

Both the Cherry and Champagne taps are supplied with Bristan’s Easyfit base, so installation is quick and easy. For large property developments, this adds up to a considerable time saving over the course of the project. The Easyfit base can be installed first and the tap fitted onto it later so it won’t get scratched while other trades are working around the kitchen.

Faultless service

Chris concluded: “The Bristan team has been really helpful. We had an enquiry about WRAS approval and this was answered quickly, plus we can get samples and parts all delivered the next day. You can’t fault that for service.”

Warren Aikens, Area Specification Manager from Bristan Group said: “Housebuilders like Owl Homes understand that people buying a new house want to put their own stamp on it, so it’s essential to build choices into the design and specification process. Through our partnership, we have been able to help Owl Homes meet this demand, by providing a flexible specification that couples both style freedom for end users with quality and value for money.”

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