'We Belgians have an excellent reputation for interior design'.
For more than half a century, Wilfra is mentioned in the same breath with high quality and unique home design.
The Waregem company, specializing in high-end kitchens and custom interior design, is now with Stephen Fraeye to the third generation. "My grandfather founded the company in the 50s, when only focused on kitchens. Later my father joined the business and I myself started in the 90s as a twenties in the production department. We have a beautiful family history and can rely on many years of experience. But my focus is first and foremost on the future. I believe that with our specific approach, where quality and customization are central, we can make the difference. And that in this way there is still a lot of potential for Wilfra," says the manager passionately.
Quality is your absolute driving force, how do you succeed in achieving that in all projects and every time again?
"We have a small but driven team. Our architects, technical staff and mechanics are all people who are at the top of their craft. I consider that to be the key to quality. I am responsible for the daily management of Wilfra, and I often come to the workshop to monitor the quality of the production. Maybe a bit too much to the liking of the mechanics.
Everything you do is made to measure and is produced in-house. How do you distinguish yourself from your competitors?
"There are indeed a lot of other players, especially in the kitchen sector. But we make top-of-the-line custom work, here we don't produce the same thing twice. Our customers are looking for timeless quality and refined exclusivity: an inspiring living room, a kitchen with a cachet, a luxurious bathroom... They want to take their living environment to at high level at all costs and that's not a problem.
When we make a plan, we do it with a lot of care and attention to small details. A specially designed rack, a kitchen table in an exclusive material, sophisticated cutlery trays... Everything is possible! A design is not free with us, but our professional approach and our eye for detail create a lot of confidence. This ensures that more than half of the people who come to us for a plan, also effectively choose for us.
Wilfra is clearly on fire. Are you thinking of expansion in the future?
"We are now mainly active in West and East Flanders, but also abroad, mainly at Belgians who live there.
We recently completed projects in Paris and London, for example, and Tel Aviv and Cologne are still on the programme this year. I wouldn't want anything more than to build an extra showroom abroad. I have noticed that there are a lot of possibilities there. Should I be able to clone myself, I might have done that a long time ago...(laughs) But I don't do it because I like to keep control over my company. We insist on quality and exclusivity and I doubt if this would still be possible if I had to be at many different locations at the same time. Of course, we do grow at our site in Waregem: we are currently looking for good mechanics and support for the
Office. Standing still is not the order of the day!
So it is a conscious choice not to grow too fast in order to achieve unrivalled quality?
"That's right. I would rather have a small team that excels in the profession than working with subcontractors during busy periods, for example. I refuse to do that. Of course, this sometimes leads to planning problems. But on the other hand, we can shift our projects more easily, precisely because we are so small. Yes, I strongly believe in close and flexible expert teams.
Where do you find inspiration to stay at the top of your profession?
"Of course I visit the most important trade fairs. It is fascinating to meet people from the industry and to exchange thoughts. But most of the inspiration I get is actually when I stroll through the streets of the town before or after
a fair. A beautiful building, a beautiful shop interior: that inspires me most of all and then I bring those ideas to Waregem.
We Belgians have an excellent reputation for interior design in Europe, I always hear that when I am abroad. We make beautiful things with Wilfra and I am well aware of that. Is that arrogance? Not at all, we can just be very proud of our expertise. It drives us to get better and better!
