OakWood Designers & Builders

I finally could afford my dream reno. My OakWood home renovation is pure opulence. From the walk-in closet that's bigger than some apartments to the spa-like bathroom with heated floors, it's my own private sanctuary. Every day feels like a vacation.

The Oakwood Design Centre (Oakwood Designers & Builders) creates the dreams you did not even know you had and turns them into reality. The showrooms are beyond stunning, exhibiting exceptional design and craftsmanship.

The Oakwood team is professional, engaged and provides a top tier level of customer service.

The Oakwood Design Centre has to be top of mind for considering custom home builds and dream renovations!

Best showroom in Ottawa. Largest selection of high quality materials in a very modern showroom. In-house team of experts are very knowledgable and helpful for your project, no matter the size -from renovations to aparment buildings. Also a great event space!

I've worked with Oakwood on a few occasions, the latest was our on suite bathroom that needed an update. Very happy with the results and how detailed the estimate was. Everything was made clear along the way. Would highly recommend.

The decision to work with OakWood Designers & Builders for our basement renovation was a no brainer. Seeing all the positive feedback and recognition they have received gave us some piece of mind and the fact that they have been in business since 1956 is another reason we felt confident placing our trust in OakWood’s hands for this project. We are extremely pleased with how everything went, and their entire team was a pleasure to work with.

The end result of our project left us very satisfied, excellent workmanship and materials. However, the process was very frustrating with numerous delays. At times communication was non existent. Changes were made during our project that did improve however overall the process was quite frustrating.

I reached out to Oakwood for a kitchen renovation quote and dealt with Amaanee. She was very professional, great personality and great ideas and presented to us a very professional submission. Thanks Amaanee!

I am so grateful to have found this company. They transformed my outdated and cramped kitchen into a beautiful and functional space that I now love spending time in. The team was always communicative and respectful of my time and space. I would recommend them to anyone looking to improve their home. They even made sure to clean up thoroughly each day, so I never had to worry about a mess.

One of the things that sets Oakwood apart is their commitment to communication. They understand that home renovation projects can be stressful and there was some delay in execution, but it was not from their end, yet they did strive to make the process as smooth and transparent as possible. They are always available to answer questions and address concerns, and they go out of their way to ensure that their clients are happy with the work that is being done.

In addition to their exceptional customer service, Oakwood also delivers outstanding results. Their team of skilled professionals has the expertise and experience to tackle even the most complex renovation projects. Whether it's a kitchen remodel, bathroom renovation, or a complete home makeover, Oakwood has the knowledge and resources to get the job done right.

Thank you Oakwood! The quality of the workmanship was outstanding. The attention to detail was evident in every aspect of the renovation, from the custom cabinetry to the beautiful tile work. The team was meticulous in their work and ensured that every aspect of the project was completed to perfection.

One of the things that impressed me the most about the team was their communication. They kept me informed every step of the way and were always available to answer any questions I had. I never felt like I was in the dark or left wondering what was happening with the project.

The project was completed on time and within budget. There were no surprises, NDA's or any hidden costs, and the final result was a charm, thanks again

Oakwood did an excellent job on my home renovation. Professional, high quality work, and great customer service. Highly recommend. Five stars!

I am reading some of these reviews about an NDA and as an Oakwood client, I can say from experience that Oakwood does not have an NDA in their contract. Oakwood is almost finished with our house addition, and our family is very pleased with the quality of the work and the quality of the people working for Oakwood. We did experience some delays with our kitchen, but this was directly due to their Cabico supplier having delays like many companies have nowadays. We are understanding about this and am thankful that Oakwood was diligent and never wavered from their quality and support. Our family would highly recommend Oakwood to anyone looking for a strong company that keeps its word and does very good work.

Website mentions 10,700+ clients, but there’s only 104 reviews on here?
Something about having to sign a non-disclosure clause? More info needed.

I am a carpenter that fixes a lot of over dude and shotty Oakwood work. A very large amount. Il see you all soon.

I've dealt with Oakwood for years now across 2 companies I've worked for. They've always been professional and on the ball. I highly recommend their services.

Professional work, on time, clean and perfected. From first contact, planning, suggestions, selection, state of the art showroom, design through to completion. Highly recommend.

Not a customer, but upon researching that this business has a clause to prevent any poor reviews to be posted online, take them with caution and shame.

I have worked with Oakwood on multiple projects over several years and they have always been very helpful. They are professional and deliver exactly what they promised they would do. The latest project had some labor and material supply delays, but it was not Oakwood causing the delay and we can see what is going on with supply chain issues on the news. They want me as a long-term client and have always taken good care of any warranty work that was required. I would recommend Oakwood and will use their services again.

After calling, I found they will pressure you for your info in order to use it to bully you into leaving a good review. Avoiding at all costs.

DO NOT USE - These reviews are all "baked". Unprofessional service, generally uninformed about the industry and lack of any real design intelligence. Many other competitors exist, go elsehwere. Oakwood can't invoice correctly, have poor workmanship, and will plan phone games with you- AVOID

OakWood is a fantastic company with core family values, and a high calibre execution with each project they touch. I’ve worked closely with this company and I’ve never experienced any single issue with processes, contractual agreements and accountability when problems arise. Anytime the company has made a mistake they are quick and concise with the ability to recognize and reconcile any issues at hand within a timely manner. Very respectful bunch and happy to continue working alongside them.
Keep up the great work guys! Thanks for all the business you provide to the local vendors and retailers here in Ottawa!
Matt at HD.

My wife and I recently approached Oakwood to discuss investment property opportunities. Following the initial contact, we visited the Oakwood Design Centre in Orleans to meet with Trent Doherty (senior development manager) and Chuck Smith (VP Finance). We were met on arrival by Trent who introduced us to Chuck as well as a few other Oakwood staff members present. The Oakwood team is very friendly. Trent also gave us a tour of the facility. Impressive! Our meeting with Trent and Chuck was both successful and insightful. They are highly knowledgeable, friendly and accommodating. And they were able to break things down for us to bring much clarity to our vision in terms of the investment options available to us and the way forward. In a rather unassuming way, they leave you in no doubt that you are in capable hands, that you are dealing with high-caliber professionals who are trustworthy and know their industry and the local market. And you get the sense that they will go the extra mile to help you to achieve your investment property goals. But of course, they also make you understand that it is a "partnership" and that they expect you to also do your part diligently. By the time we left the meeting, we had no doubt in our minds that we wanted to do business with Oakwood. What's more, we were clear in our minds as to the next steps. Currently, we are doing our homework in preparation for a start. We look forward to doing business with Oakwood soon and establishing a long-lasting business relationship.

This is to acknowledge the work of the OakWood team on our recent kitchen renovation, which consisted of opening a wall and remodeling of a galley-style kitchen. Overall, we felt the project went quite smoothly, despite some inevitable hiccups. As expected with an older home, a few changes were required that differed from the original plans, (e.g. We were not able to use the existing hardwood floor and needed to install new; a wall thought to be load-bearing, did not end up being load bearing). In light of all this, OakWood was able to keep our project within budget and a reasonable time frame. The end result is a stunning, new and functional kitchen!

Throughout the project, we found the project manager and the tradesmen pleasant and knowledgeable. Our project manager made himself available when needed, which sometimes included evenings and weekends, and he always responded patiently to any questions with clear and concise answers. Although the kitchen renovation was disruptive to our day-to-day lives, we are extremely happy with our new kitchen and would not hesitate to recommend OakWood to others considering a home renovation.

I am writing to provide some feedback regarding our experience with OakWood.

Our project was rather extensive, with an accelerated time frame given our close on March 18th, and my very advanced state of pregnancy (due April 9th).

Our designer's organization, advice, patience, and attention to detail made what could have been an extremely stressful and confusing process a lot of fun. She went above and beyond to provide excellent design advice- clearly understanding our vision from the get-go - and making thoughtful and useful suggestions along the way. We are very detail-oriented people and truly appreciated her ability to stay on top of the 20 emails we exchanged every day. Despite being flooded with questions and selections, she did not miss any details/credits/charges in the numerous change orders she prepared. On top of everything, she is such a lovely person and was a pleasure to deal with every day!

The project management aspect of our renovation was also excellent. We were kept apprised of developments as the work progressed and our input and concerns were addressed immediately. The work was done in a professional manner with minimal impact on our daily lives.

Overall it was a very positive experience and we are very pleased with the results.

We had initially contacted another company to complete our renovations but delays and poor communication led us to ultimately hire OakWood. Our positive experience began with our designer who collaborated with us to bring our dream design to life.

This included thoughtful advice about design solutions that anticipated and prevented problems before the build had even started. We then signed a contract that clearly delineated our respective responsibilities and obligations. The excellent communication and collaboration continued with our project manager, who was our partner and principal point of contact during the build process. To say him and his team was a pleasure to deal with would be an understatement. Even when the inevitable problem did arise, his calm, reassuring and personable attitude diffused any tension while he quickly acted to make things right. My wife and I were immensely grateful that he clearly communicated what was happening at each stage of the process and operated in a fully transparent manner.

Our renovations followed a well-organized and detailed schedule and OakWood defied the odds to have us back in our home before Christmas (I cannot begin to express our gratitude that OakWood and their sub-contractors worked so tirelessly to make this happen). Finally, I would like to say a word about the quality sub-contractors OakWood uses. They were a truly exceptionally bunch who went above and beyond to meet our needs. Just one exceptional example of this involved one electrician who came to our home on a Saturday evening before Christmas to finish off one last thing before the holidays. To summarize, OakWood delivered our project on time (actually faster than expected), exactly on budget, while providing excellent collaboration, transparent communication, and an indefatigable commitment to delivering exactly what the client wants. Can you tell I'm a happy customer? Chose OakWood and you will be too!

Michael and I wanted to share how pleased we are with the final result of our main floor renovation.

The difference is stunning! We had a pretty good idea what we wanted right from the very beginning, but the end result is much better than we expected. In addition to looking fantastic, the space is used far more practically than it was in the past.

We really appreciate all the effort and personal attention put into the project – particularly around the mid-point when things had stalled. Our happiness with the end result completely out measures any frustrations along the way.

Thanks again for all the hard work. We will not hesitate to recommend OakWood to others looking for a quality renovation company.

We worked with OakWood to complete a main floor renovation. We did not want something too regular, but also did not want to be out there too far. We had also never tackled anything of this size and really needed some guidance. Our designer got to know us by listening to what we were looking for and brought forward innovative ideas, pushing a bit to see where we were comfortable and where we were not. The design process was organic, growing from a concept and it took a good number of versions and modifications as the process went forward. Throughout it all, our designer was patient and professional, answering questions and providing advice.

In particular, her attention to details on issues that we would have never even thought of, but that we know for certain would have either bothered us had they not been addressed, or never would have appreciated how good it could have looked had they been overlooked, was impressive. From layout to colours to finishes, we could not have done this without OakWood's design advice.

We must also recognize Denis, who handled the cabinet design aspects. We were of course trying to find a way to make our wish list come true. Denis investigated options and brought forward innovative solutions to issues that were important to us but where a solution did not seem possible, and initiative approaches that would never have thought of.

We have hosted a lot of parties and dinners in the last 6 months and everyone has been truly impressed with our new kitchen.

We would not hesitate to use OakWood again. Having renovated on our own it was wonderful to hand over our kitchen renovation to a professional team that kept us updated from day one and took the time to explain when problems within the original structure cropped up. Can't say enough about the trades and our project manager. The result is amazing. The space is warm and inviting, just what we always dreamed of but never thought we would achieve.

I keep looking out the window to see if any OakWood vehicles are pulling in. Sad in a way that it's all over – my wife on the other hand is pleased that her space has been returned. In short it was a brilliant success! The end result exceeds expectations and along the way we met lots of great people with great skills and talents.

The entire process was professional, well managed, well-staffed and we had complete confidence that the end result would be worth any renovation anxieties along the way.

Thanks to everyone.any OakWood employee or sub trade is welcome at any time to stop by for a cold ‘beverage’ and a look at the finished product.

These guys are the best design & build company in the city, hands down. I hired OakWood to complete some renovation work on my home and have been impressed at every step of the way. I chose OakWood as I’ve been in this industry for over 20 years and everyone I’ve worked with and spoken to has nothing but good things to say about the quality of their work and the way things are run. I highly recommend them for any construction work.

Our family was planning a new large home renovation with a new kitchen and addition. We hear about all kinds of builders having problems and also designers that cannot stay within a budget so we looked for a strong, well-established design and building company that we could rely on in these unsteady times. We looked at all the established builders and researched over 36 different companies. I research and dig deeply into companies for a living. After exhaustive research, we decided to go with OakWood for the complete design and home renovation work. They warned us that we are in the construction world and that things would go wrong but they had our back and we would be part of their team. I was surprised that they also made it clear that it is also my responsibility to be a good client. Their over 65 years of being in business, successful completion of over 10,000 projects and solid reputation convinced us, so we trusted them to do the right thing. Our trust was well placed. Things did happen with the supply chain and a few trades did not perform as per the OakWood standard but we never worried because OakWood always took care of everything for us. We are so happy that we went with OakWood and our home is now perfect for us. Our experience has been excellent and we would highly recommend OakWood for anyone considering a larger project or simply anyone that wants that piece of mind. Their workers are super nice and wonderful to work with and they are very much a 5 star company with deep process. Our family is grateful and recommends them for quality work.

I met with the owner to discuss investment property opportunities with OakWood. He was very accommodating and extremely knowledgeable about the Ottawa market.

We hired OakWood to renovate our home based on the recommendation of one of our close friends. I now understand why he gave such high praise. Our kitchen has been completely transformed over the past few months and the quality of work is second to none. Based on the work that was done, I would feel confident recommending this company to anyone who is looking for a professional and high quality renovation.

I worked with OakWood to renovate my kitchen and have only positive things to say about my experience. Despite the inevitable hiccups that come with large renovations, the entire process went very smoothly and I have to commend them for a job well done.

OakWood has the best Design Centre in Ottawa, hands down. If you are looking for inspiration and high-quality materials for a design and build project, look no further.

I spoke with the owner about building a custom home in Kanata and he is a wealth of information. I highly recommend consulting OakWood if you are considering building a custom home or any type of construction project for that matter.

Updated at bottom. Non-disclosure Clause. Read and understand your contract (the section on disputes). After a month of discusions, site visits and meetings I thought we had a well described scope and budget to restore a fire damaged house. Oakwood presents us with the contract and it includes a non-disclosure clause: if we post an unfavourable review we are subject to a penalty of 50% of the value of the contract. My wife and I were unwilling to sign away our Charter Right to Freedom of Expression. We asked our Oakwood agent to remove the clause. We even met with the owner and told him we are happy to acknolwedge the consequences of liable and slander on our part but the non-disclosure had to be removed. He refused and appeared surprised when we walked away. I think the presence of a non-disclosure clause makes the public reviews of Oakwood an unreliable indicator of their services. I have no personal experience with the quality of their work.
UPDATE: In response to the owner's feedback, I have increased my score from two stars to three which reflects a generously neutral review. My experience with Oakwood is limited to 5 or 6 in-person meetings and the costing of a scope of work (I provided a detailed SOW which they entered in their system to generate a quote). The contract was dated 5 March 2020, before the pandemic had any impact on construction, labour or materials. I post this review now because my house fire claim has finally been resolved. I have a history of posting favourable, neutral and adverse reviews without hiding behind a pseudonym. Readers can draw their own conclusions.

I really can't underscore how much Oakwood's guidance helps to bring clarity to a process that is complex and very new to me. The relief in being able to lean on a team with their level of experience is invaluable. An otherwise stressful experience is made easy and streamlined.

I'm a small investor now starting to think and dream about building a small apartment building. I had an appointment with Trent and he was fantastic. He showed me a 4 unit multiplex they were just building which would fit my current available budget. I did not feel pressured at all, and didn't feel judged.

I do have a few investment options at this time, but out of all the builders I've met with in Ottawa, his presentation and thoughtfulness struck me as top notch. I know I will DEFINITELY pick OakWood for any future opportunities in Ottawa.

For any investors out there, check out OakWood.

P. S. They have Fuji water and Perrier. ;D

After approaching multiple contractors in 2018-19 we decided to go with Oakwood based on their thorough quote and professional approach. Our project began during the pandemic and despite a challenging project and the challenges of the pandemic Oakwood went the extra mile to do the best work possible. All work was done to the highest quality and the contractors for all the jobs were top notch. One particular aspect stands out in my mind wrt quality. Our new 3rd floor room floor is level with the existing floor. No easy task in an 100+ yo house. Rather than building on top of existing material which would meaning having to step up into the new room Oakwood brought the construction area back to the skeleton and built things correctly from there up. This makes a major difference in terms of final outcome. Yes it takes more time and money but is far better than putting the new room on top of what was there. The end result is a new room that is integrated with the rest of the house that uses modern construction and ensures additional weight is kept to a minimum. I would not hesitate to have Oakwood do more work in the future and I thank them again for their dedication and professionalism.

I’ve worked with OakWood on multiple occasions for various design & build projects and cannot speak highly enough of their expertise and professionalism.

I hired OakWood Designers & Builders to complete a home addition renovation project. Their consultants and designers were able to quickly identify potential issues before construction began which saved us time and spared us from what would have certainly been a major headache. All of their staff and trades were very responsive and were able to address any questions and issues as soon as they arose.

We are very glad that we chose OakWood as our renovator. The fact that they are backed and approved by Mike Holmes made it an easy decision to choose OakWood for our renovation project since we knew that they would do it right and spare us the headaches that often come with large renovation projects. They delivered on every promise, and we can see why Mike holds them in such high regard.

Very professional and hard working people. A great company to work with for anyone considering a design and build project.

I recently met with John to discuss some personal investments, as well as some future enterprises. Although I am just beginning & was looking for help, he took the time to give me good advice and answer questions personally. There was no pressure whatsoever and I was able to walk through the design studio & get a good look at the finishes they use.

A fantastic team of professionals that pride themselves on service and quality workmanship above all else. Keep up the great work!

Amazing company to work with. The design studio is a must see! I had the pleasure of helping my aunt pick out materials for her new kitchen and the end result is absolutely stunning!

We have had the pleasure of dealing with and purchasing 3 custom kitchens from Oakwood and every experience has exceeded our expectations. Dealing with John, Denis and the team is always a pleasant experience. Their attention to detail and customer satisfaction is top priority and this is clearly evident in the finished product. I highly recommend the Oakwood team and will continue to use them for our projects.

We worked with OakWood in the past to work on out master bedroom and bathroom. Our experience back then was overall very positive, and when we decided to potentially change our kitchen we contacted OakWood again.

The designer we were paired with worked with us extensively to show us what our kitchen could look like. When we started, we were not convinced it was worth doing the work, as we weren't sure our house would lend itself to the kind of change we had in mind and were hoping for. Basically what we were lacking was a vision of what was possible in our limited space. OakWood's designer was able to show us several designs of what she thought the kitchen could look like and seeing her ideas sold us on the idea to take on this reno.

Together with the designer we were able to quickly and efficiently design a beautiful kitchen, and we found the new approach refreshing and helpful. Being able to come to the design centre and make 75% of all of our decisions and product choices right there and then was huge. And our designer was fantastic in understanding our wants and needs for the space and made some key changes and recommendations that make the kitchen such a great space to work and be in now.

Once demolition started, the project was handed over to to OakWood's Project Manager. And we can't say enough about how great the PM was. As in any reno, we encountered several surprises and issues, but he dealt with them all in such a calm and measured way that we felt confident at all times that our project was in good hands.

Now that the kitchen is done, we have been thoroughly enjoying our new space. We love every single aspect of our kitchen, and I can't think of a single thing we would have done differently. I am also confident that if we hadn't chosen OakWood and hadn't gotten to work with their designer, PM, and their respective teams, the experience and end result would not have been nearly as positive.