What does a nearly RM4 million office look like?
We got our answer recently while touring the office of The Makeover Guys (TMOG). Located in Kota Damansara, the space spans around 10,000 square feet, according to founder and CEO Gavin.
But why did it cost so much?
First, meet the makeover guys
For those who haven’t heard of these guys before, TMOG might sound like just an interior designer or decorator to you, just based on their name. More than that though, they’re a one-stop property solution for Malaysia’s homeowners.
The company was founded in 2015 by Gavin and Vince to bridge the gap between ultra-expensive homes as well as those Ikea copycats.
Essentially, they wanted to make options that were “affordable but atas” available to Malaysians.
Starting from that initial cause, TMOG has grown massively over the years. Beyond their end-to-end interior design help for own-stay projects as well as rental investments, TMOG also works with developers to launch properties together, bundling it with their services.
They’ve worked with premier developers such as Sime Darby and Tropicana, giving input about their property from the very beginning.
“I think the goal is to minimise the construction waste,” Gavin pointed out. “There’s no point for a developer to build something, and then we come in and tear it down. That’s totally a waste of money and a waste of time, and it generates a lot of waste.”
But enough about designing for others; what about their very own, newly “made-over” space?
Experiencing the experience centre
TMOG’s new digs in Kota Damansara are like a three-in-one space. Not only is it their office, it’s also an experience centre as well as… a cafe?
While TMOG has showrooms, this experience centre is the first of its kind for the company. The idea behind it is for customers to really get comfortable and feel at home—none of that sterile, formal vibe that some showrooms have with the “do not sit” signs.
The centre has four areas—a living room, a kitchen, a bedroom, and then an additional space where there’s no built-in furniture to show clients what can be accomplished even with loose pieces.
After giving a tour of the new space, Gavin sat down with us to share more about TMOG.
“This has always been on the roadmap; this has always been the plan,” he shared about the experience centre.
However, due to the pandemic, the plan was put on hold for quite some time. Having made it through the challenging few years, it was finally time for them to make good on that goal. Planning took about six months, while the actual renovation process took eight to nine months.
As for the Kota Damansara location, Gavin’s answer was simple: “I’m a PJ boy, that’s it. I can’t imagine leaving it.”
Beyond that, the concept of the EmHub building, where TMOG is located, perfectly suited what they were looking for. Like TMOG’s own space, EmHub offers three-in-one spaces that can serve as a warehouse, showroom, or office.
The way it’s set up allows for the TMOG team and lorries to park directly outside the office. This allows the team to make quick refreshes to their experience centre, as they plan to introduce new themes every now and again.
Going all-in
While TMOG does take on commercial projects, it’s not at the core of what the team does. Commercial designs tend to be more of a pet project for the designers to experiment with new concepts, as residential spaces do tend to follow a certain format.
“This entire buildup of the office and experience centre, I think, was one of the most fun projects the team has got to work on,” he said.
But all this fun experimentation does come at a cost. To build the entire experience centre and office, Gavin said it cost almost RM4 million, which was double their initial budget.
As someone who is in the industry, Gavin thought that he had the budget on lock, but many last-minute decisions were made along the way. At one point, the mantra became “might as well,” which added quite a few hefty bills to the final cost.
Another thing that likely added to the cost was the incorporation of RaRa Coffee’s space.
Not just an office space or a showroom
One thing that the centre has already gone viral for is its built-in coffee shop, RaRa Coffee.
“I told you the construction took around eight to nine months, right? It was only until month seven that [we decided on RaRa Coffee’s involvement],” he said.
Yet, the root of this collaboration predates even the planning of the experience centre.
Gavin explained that he’s known the RaRa Coffee team for a long time, ever since they had their very first 500-square-foot studio in Ara Damansara. In fact, the founder is actually a part of TMOG.
“We always joked, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to have RaRa in our office?’” Gavin recalled. Of course, there was always some sincerity to that joke.
But as the years came and went, so did that idea. Assumptions were made that neither party wished to make that old dream a reality anymore.
Yet, halfway into building the new experience centre, Gavin suggested to RaRa that they should open up in the area. When they responded that parking and costs seemed to be too high, Gavin offered them a spot in the office. And, well, they took the opportunity.
“Quickly in those few days, I had to change the entire floor plan,” he said. “I actually built some stuff already, but I had to tear it down to change it to one long cafe space.”
The space was supposed to be a play area, complete with an 85-inch TV and gaming consoles. That TV is now stored away.
But well, as Gavin said, “No regrets.”
Not here to design award-winning concepts
Speaking about TMOG’s intentions, Gavin shared that the goal is never to create crazy, award-winning designs.
“I think we need to push boundaries for sure, but it cannot be just on the design aspect, because we’re here to serve a purpose, which is to enable people to enjoy better homes,” he pointed out.
What sets apart a good designer from a great designer, Gavin believes, is being able to work with very limited resources.
Carrying that philosophy, the TMOG team is on track to achieving 1,200 makeovers this year—which is 100 a month.
In today’s day and age where owning a home feels harder than ever, especially for first-timers, it’s great to see how TMOG keeps affordability at the forefront of their approach.
- Learn more about The Makeover Guys here.
- Read other articles we’ve written about Malaysian startups here.
Featured Image Credit: Vulcan Post