How we work

Your project, from first conversation to final install.

Commissioning bespoke joinery is a significant investment, and if you haven’t done it before it can be hard to know what to expect. What will it cost? How long will it take? What happens if you change your mind halfway through?

This guide answers those questions. Every Master Studio project moves through the same five stages, each with a clear scope, cost, and outcome — so at any point you know where your project sits, what happens next, and what it will cost. At each stage you’ll see what you receive, what we need from you, and the terms that apply — written in plain language, so there’s no fine print waiting for you at the end.

01CONSULT

FREE

Every project starts with a conversation — usually an hour or two, on site or at the studio in Woolston. We talk through what you’re hoping to build: scope, style, budget, and timeframes. It’s also a chance for both of us to be sure we’re the right fit for the work.

The more you can share at this stage — photos, plans, reference images, rough measurements — the more useful the conversation will be.

YOU RECEIVE

A shared Project Board — an online scrapbook where we both collect ideas, photos, plans, and details for your project (a paper version is there if you prefer) — plus a look at previous work and a browse through material and hardware samples.

YOU PROVIDE

Your ideal timeline and the budget you’re working to.

THE DETAIL
  • No charge, no obligation.

02ENGAGE & DEVELOP

$780 INCL. GST

If we’re a good fit, your project begins with a paid design engagement. This is deliberate. Rather than a free sales sketch, the engagement fee buys real design hours: your project properly modelled, materials and construction considered, and decisions you can actually make. You receive a developed concept — layout, materials, and detail — presented for your review, with two rounds of changes included to get it right.

YOU RECEIVE

Concept drawings and renders, a bracketed price guide, and a material and component specification.

YOU PROVIDE

Your Project Board, filled with whatever you’ve gathered — ideas, plans, measurements — and a deadline you’re comfortable committing to.

THE DETAIL
  • Payment of the Engagement Invoice confirms your project — there’s no separate paperwork to sign.
  • Two rounds of design changes are included.
  • Designs remain the property of Master Studio until the design work is paid for.

03REFINE

$85 + GST / HOUR

With the concept agreed, we finalise every detail ready for manufacture — dimensions, hardware, finishes, and the practical decisions that make a piece work as well in twenty years as it does on day one. We visit the site to measure, and typically this stage runs about two weeks — timeline and project dependent.

YOU RECEIVE

Your finalised design and your complete itemised costing. The design — and its intellectual property — is handed over to you once all design-stage invoices are paid.

YOU PROVIDE

Decisions on specification versus cost, and access for a site visit and measure.

THE DETAIL
  • Billed weekly at $85 + GST per hour, so you can see exactly where design time is going.
  • Changes requested after design sign-off become paid variations — always agreed with you first.

04MANUFACTURE

50% DEPOSIT / 50% ON COMPLETION

Your project is built in our Woolston workshop — designed and made by the same hands, working to a fixed deadline set with you. Before manufacture begins we re-check the site measurements, so what we build fits what’s actually there.

While your project is in the workshop we keep you informed of progress, and confirm delivery and installation timing with you to suit your project timeline.

YOU RECEIVE

Your project assembled in the workshop and presented to you and your installer for sign-off before delivery.

YOU PROVIDE

Sign-off on the assembled project — yours, and your installer’s.

THE DETAIL
  • A 50% deposit confirms your project and secures your place in the production schedule.
  • The balance is due on completion, prior to delivery or installation.

05INSTALL

SEPARATE QUOTE

Installation is quoted separately once the design is final, and there are options: we can organise installation, your builder can handle it, or you can use an installer you prefer. Whoever does the work, we make sure they have everything they need for it to go smoothly. On site, installation typically takes one to two weeks, depending on scope.

Generally, the benchtop fabricator will template after the cabinetry is installed, with the benchtop typically following around ten days later. We plan this with you from the start — and can fit a temporary top in the meantime if need be.

YOU RECEIVE

Your finished project, installed — with installer’s drawings and benchtop drawings supplied to whoever does the work.

THE DETAIL
  • Installation is quoted and invoiced separately — pricing includes transport to site.

Questions, at any stage

Master Studio is a small workshop by design — the person you meet at the first consult is the same person who designs, builds, and stands behind your project. If anything is unclear at any point, just ask.

Ready to start the conversation? hello@masterstudio.nz  or  027 671 6663

This page is a summary. The full plain-language terms travel with your Engagement Invoice.