Kitchener's newer subdivisions all shipped with the same closet — one rod, one wire shelf, stopping short of the ceiling. We build the system the room was sized for.
Kitchener has added a lot of housing in the last twenty years, and the newer subdivisions south and east of the core — Doon South, Huron Park, Williamsburg, Laurentian Hills — share a familiar pattern. The homes are family-sized with well-proportioned bedrooms and ceilings of nine feet or more, and every closet in them was finished to a builder's minimum: a single rod, a single vinyl-coated wire shelf, and nothing above roughly seven feet.
The work here is mostly about claiming space that was never fitted out rather than fixing something broken. In a newer Kitchener home the band above the standard shelf is two to three feet deep and it exists in every closet in the house. Carrying shelving to the ceiling, splitting the hanging into short and long zones so shirts and coats stop competing, and building a drawer bank into the closet is usually enough to bring the bedroom furniture down to a bed and a nightstand.
Older Kitchener is a different job. The century brick homes around Victoria Park and the streets near the downtown core have high ceilings, long walls and closets that are shallow, narrow or missing entirely. Those get measured individually rather than fitted from a standard, and where the depth is not there a built-in wardrobe against a flat wall adds considerably more usable hanging and drawer storage than anything squeezed into the original opening.
The newer subdivisions are consistent enough to describe in one paragraph. The older core is where individual measuring starts to matter.
Builders finish at roughly seven feet regardless of what is above. In a newer Kitchener home that leaves an unused band in every closet in the house.
A single rail forces shirts, coats and dresses into one vertical zone. Separating the two is the single biggest capacity gain most bedroom closets have available.
The earlier Doon South and Williamsburg builds are now old enough that the original wire has started to bow under folded clothes and linens.
Older brick homes near the core were built before deep built-in closets were standard, and often need a wardrobe rather than a retrofit.
Red Rose serves every part of Kitchener. These notes describe the housing stock in each area — what the closets are usually like, and what tends to be worth changing.
One of the larger newer subdivisions, now at the age where the original builder wire shelving is usually the first thing replaced.
Recent detached and townhome development with tall ceilings — the biggest band of unclaimed closet height in the city.
Established newer-build family streets where secondary bedroom reach-ins tend to be the closets under the most pressure.
A mix of newer and established family housing, so closet openings vary and are measured individually rather than assumed.
Century brick homes with high ceilings, long walls and shallow original closets — often better served by a built-in wardrobe.
Postwar and later family homes where the original closet fit-out has generally never been changed since the build.
Primary walk-ins in Doon South, Huron Park and Williamsburg generally have the footprint but not the fit-out. We rework them into L-shaped or U-shaped layouts that carry storage up every wall, combining double hanging, a long-hang run for coats and banks of drawers.
The core Kitchener project, especially in secondary bedrooms and townhomes. Built to your measured opening up to 130 inches wide and 10 feet tall, so nothing is lost to filler panels or an unreachable top shelf.
For the century homes around Victoria Park and the older core, a built-in wardrobe adds a full run of hanging, shelving and drawers against a flat wall, built around radiators and period trim. Sliding and bi-fold doors avoid the swing a hinged door needs in a tighter bedroom.
Mudrooms, garage entries, laundry storage and entertainment walls — the spaces that keep coats, boots and seasonal gear from ending up in the bedroom closets.
We have not published a photographed project gallery for Kitchener specifically. Rather than show stock photography or work from somewhere else and imply it was built here, we would rather point you at the real thing: photographed projects from real Ontario homes are on our portfolio and Instagram, and 100 customers across our Ontario service area have reviewed the work on Google.
If you would like to see examples closest to your own home type — a condo reach-in, a townhome primary closet, a full walk-in — ask when you get in touch and we will send relevant photos directly.
Pick your closet type, enter your wall dimensions, choose height and base style, then place the modules you want. It takes a few minutes and nothing is booked.
Your price updates live as you build, itemised by base system, drawers, height and base upgrades, and HST. No waiting for a callback to find out the number.
We review the design with you and confirm the real measurements in your Kitchener home before anything is cut, so the system fits the opening you actually have.
Your system is cut and built to those measurements in Ontario — sized to your walls rather than assembled from standard cabinet widths.
Our team removes the old shelving, patches the wall, and installs the new system. A single closet is typically a one-day install.
A 3D closet designer that prices your build as you go. You see the layout and the number before you talk to a salesperson, because there isn't one.
Every system is cut to the actual opening in your Kitchener home — up to 130 inches wide and 10 feet tall — so nothing is lost to filler panels.
We manufacture on our own equipment rather than importing a catalogue product, which is why non-standard widths, depths and ceiling heights are routine rather than surcharges.
Karan and Mehak oversee every project from the first call to the final install. The people who quote your closet are the people who deliver it.
Every Red Rose system carries a 2-year warranty, and because the parts are made here, a replacement is cut on the same equipment as the original.
100 reviews on Google at 5.0 stars, from homeowners across our Ontario service area.
Google does not publish a location for reviewers, so these are reviews from across our Ontario service area rather than Kitchener specifically.
All I can say is wow. Had a quote on a Friday late night and installed by the next Wednesday. Karan is outstanding — his attention to detail, his professionalism, and the quality of work is second to none. Highly recommend.
Super impressed with Karan and his team! Did quite a bit of research looking for the right company with the right price. Red Rose checked all the boxes. The closet looks absolutely stunning and was done quickly. Would 100% recommend.
Red Rose Custom Closets did a superb job designing and installing my custom closet — it's perfect! I needed to maximize a small space and Karan delivered exactly what I envisioned. Professional, prompt, and the quality is outstanding.
Karan from Red Rose Custom Closets was phenomenal to work with! We had 3 closets made and they are all so beautifully done. His attention to detail, quality of materials, and professionalism are unmatched. We couldn't be happier!
No — newer homes are the easiest to work in, because nothing has to be undone first. The builder closet is a rod and a shelf fixed to drywall, so removal is quick and the wall behind is in good condition. Doing it early also means you have the use of the storage for the whole time you are in the house.
A reach-in costs $650 for openings to 49 inches and $750 through the 50 to 96 inch range that most bedrooms here fall into. An L-shaped walk-in starts at $1,250 and a U-shaped one at $1,550. Drawers are $125 each, and 8, 9 and 10 foot heights add proportionally. All figures are before 13% HST.
More than most people expect. The builder finishes at about seven feet, so with a nine-foot ceiling there is a two-foot band above every closet doing nothing. Across a primary walk-in and three bedrooms that is a substantial amount of seasonal and long-term storage currently living in the basement.
A built-in wardrobe is usually the answer. It is a full-height unit with hanging, shelving and drawers built against a flat wall and finished to suit the room, and it adds real storage without moving walls. In an older Kitchener home it can be designed around radiators, baseboards and out-of-square walls rather than fighting them.
All of it — Doon South, Huron Park, Williamsburg, Laurentian Hills, Forest Heights, the older neighbourhoods around Victoria Park and everywhere between. Red Rose designs, builds and installs custom closets throughout Kitchener and Waterloo Region. What you pay depends on the closet you are building, not where it is.
Build your closet in the online designer and see the full price breakdown — reach-ins from $650 and walk-ins from $1,250, before 13% HST. No appointment needed to get a number.
Prefer to talk? Call Karan at (416) 258-1065