GIA Bathrooms & Kitchens

We recently completed our kitchen renovation with GIA and the final result is amazing. Carmel (Designer) supported us through the design phase with a number of different colour and material options and also provided guidance regarding the selection of our fittings and appliances. Sam (Project manager) coordinated the many competent and friendly trades to minimise disruption and stress. The GIA team were very professional throughout our project and we would not hesitate to work with them again in the future.

I am extremely pleased with my new bathroom. Throughout the process the GIA team proved to be extremely considerate and responsive - important because I was overseas most of the time.

A few unforeseen problems were encountered, all of which were resolved very professionally.

I am happy to recommend GIA.

We used GIA for our kitchen renovation and could not have been happier. Their whole team was experienced, professional and a pleasure to deal with. The end result was exactly what we had hoped for and more.

Highly recommended!

Great renovation for our apartment. High quality workmanship. Supportive designers and good communication about progress

We recently use GIA for our complete home renovation.
The design was done by Carmel, who took all of our ideas to create the perfect family home. The entire team was professional and a pleasure to deal with from start to finish.
Highly recommend GIA for anyone considering renovation work in their home.

Illan and his team at GIA are amazing. Super helpful, professional and always happy to help. It was an absolute pleasure working and dealing with them.

We chose GIA to renovate our kitchen, laundry and family room.
They did an excellent job and we are very happy with the result.
As often happens in renovations there were a few unexpected hiccups and delays. To their credit they resolved all the problems without any issues.
We did go away for 2 weeks in the middle of the renovation which is when things went wrong so i wouldn’t advise this. We found that when we were present everything went more smoothly.
They were more expensive than other quotes we got for the job but the quality of the workmanship was worth the extra cost.
They were also relatively efficient and reliable and Illan was particularly lovely to deal with.

We're super-happy with the renovation GIA did for us. We have a completely remodeled kitchen which is fantastic, stripped and lime-washed boards which are perfect in the context and they moved some walls and doors for us to make another space more workable. The end result is even better than we hoped for and everyone is responsive and easy to work with. We're looking forward to having them do a bathroom for us down the track.

Our renovation occurred mostly during Melbourne's lockdowns so progress at times was terribly slow and what should have taken 4 - 5 months took nearly 10 months. However, despite all the pressure the building company must have been under, they were responsive and listened. Variations usually cause arguments between client and builder and yes, there were some vigorous discussions, but there was some very satisfying give and take. The finished product is very good and we are happy with the end result. Special thanks to Sam our site Manager who listened and responded pretty promptly and always courteously. Given all the pressure the building and renovation industry has been under for two years, we are very grateful for that our project was completed and to such a very good standard.

I had a specific enquiry for GIA with respect to a kitchen that they designed. They were absolutely fantastic and answered my enquiry very promptly and also provided me with the information I was after which was great.

GIA renovated our small townhouse last year. We converted an internal garage into a storage space, study, ensuite and European laundry. In short, we are very happy with the results, the spaces are beautiful and very functional, and almost exactly like we had pictured. Their staff and contractors were professional and friendly. However, the process wasn't as smooth or transparent as we had liked. In hindsight, we would have included more clear agreements about communication, timelines, and the agreement to see invoices and receipt for items that went over budget. I would have given 4.5 stars if that was an option!

In detail; when we first contacted GIA, based on reviews, the designer said we wouldn't need any council approvals as it was an internal reno. This turned out to be incorrect, and we did need planning approval, delaying the start of the reno by 1.5 years (Port Philip council took extremely long, also due to COVID). When we signed on with GIA, after we organised the planning permit ourselves, we went through our wishes in great detail. One of the reasons we signed with GIA was that we potentially needed to be overseas and we wanted the reno to be in safe hands while away. GIA ensured us we would get very frequent updates through video calls, pictures and email.

Before they started demolition, there were some changes to the design due to a clause in the Building code and some measurements had not been taken correctly. However, these changes were minor and were solved to our satisfaction. When GIA started the reno, things were going pretty smooth. There were (unexpected) issues behind walls and floors, which they worked with us to resolve in the best possible way.

However, about two thirds in, we needed to go overseas and that's when communication started to fall down. We kept asking for updates but wouldn't hear anything for weeks. Instead we needed to ask family to go and check on progress. We found that some things were overlooked (e.g. Power points, a ducted heating vent) and they needed to backtrack to resolve it. Progress seemed to stall a bit. There were some disagreements about how much painting was included in the original quote. We had told the designer that we wanted them to deliver a fully finished house to us, including all painting and cleaning. However, they wanted to only paint the inside of the renovated areas, and not the outside of newly constructed walls, leaving our hallways and existing master bedroom look half-finished. In the end we agreed to pay half each of the extra painting.

When they finished the job, unfortunately we were still overseas. When we came home a month later, we were happy with the result, but discovered there were some issues that needed to be resolved (cleaning, caulking, creaking floorboards, minor tile chips, and other small issues), which GIA took 6 months and many many reminders to resolve. A couple of issues could not be resolved, e.g. The bedroom floor isn't completely flush with the new ensuite floor (~12mm off), the creaking floor boards had to be repaired and have visible marks in the hallway. I should stress that overall, we were very happy with the end result.

The bill (that we had paid when still overseas) was higher than quoted. So we asked to see invoices and receipts for line items that had gone over budget, but were told: "Invoices for material and sub contractors are never provided to clients, this is industry wide". E.g. We were charged 60% more than quoted for the external surveyor and building permit. However, when I asked several times to at least see the surveyors paperwork, it finally emerged 6 months later that they had actually forgotten to get the final sign off from the surveyor (which ended up fine).

We would consider to sign with them again if we were to renovate again, but we would probably discuss a few extra conditions: clear agreement about frequency of communication/updates, a timeline to resolve outstanding issues, and insight into invoices and receipts. With those agreements in place, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend GIA.

I had a great experience doing a full bathroom and partial kitchen renovation with GIA. I came to the design process with a few concepts and ideas, and looking at the final product I'm thrilled with how everything turned out. It's exactly what I wanted, and I wouldn't have achieved anything remotely as good without Olivia's guidance.

The full service isn't cheap, but you get what you pay for - and I'd definitely work with GIA again for any future projects.

Jan - March 2022
After months of researching bathroom renovation companies I came across GIA. Reviews, website & social media all pointed towards a high end company who care about the details in a build. The process was supposed to be professional, efficient & the finish to match.

Honestly, could not be more disappointed. It felt as though after the first week I was managing the build with my constant questions to the site supervisor to get information on next steps & dates. I chose NOT to organize my own trades and manage them for this build as I have done many times in the past, but wanted to leave it to the professionals and pay for the privilege. On the whole, this is not what I received from GIA. From carpenters who didn’t care about fixtures being fitted correctly, to tilers who couldn’t cut & place tiles straight or grout properly, to cabinet makers who couldn’t take customer directions, to a team who only backed each other up and didn’t listen to the customer’s needs.

It was I, not the site supervisor who pointed out the issues along the way and it was I who ended up constantly cleaning up & finishing off the detail that was always missed. Communication was minimal even up to the point of the site supervisor not answering my messages for days because he was no longer my site supervisor and no one had thought to tell me.

More staff are very much needed, so that designers and site supervisors are not running in and out of projects and have time to assess what is going on at the site properly. Before handover, someone needs to come in and check EVERY detail.
GIA offer a bespoke service & that is what the customer expects and should be receiving. Unfortunately, it is not what I received but ultimately paid for.

We used GIA to renovate our kitchen, bathrooms and laundry as well as flooring during Covid. The design process was great. We ended up with a lovely, refreshed home. Of course there were hiccups but the Operations Manager went out of his way to resolve these. Thanks James.

GIA state: “Rest assured, the entire construction process is overseen by our highly experienced management team – this allows us to ensure your renovation is achieved in a timely manner, with minimal disruption to your everyday life. ”

-The GIA “standard” contract had 25 special conditions, we should have engaged an experienced construction lawyer to review,
-The GIA point of contact/site supervisor was on site for less than 22% of days worked by the many GIA subcontractors,
-We had to move out of our home for two months because of the disruption, and
-Our eight-week renovation remains incomplete after almost eight months

We chose GIA to do our bathroom and kitchen renovations because the reviews were fantastic. We are generally content with the outcome of our renovation, however the process was not smooth at all. Unfortunately our designated interior designer from GIA left the company just before our project started, and we were never provided with another interior designer to oversee our design plans. There were miscommunications and misinterpretations of our plans, and things started to go wrong e.g. Kitchen tiles and laundry tiles were swapped (very slight difference in colour and material). Workmanship was fantastic, but communication and attention to detail in following our design plan was lacking. It must have just been us who were unfortunate that we happened to get a designer who would leave the company as soon as the contracts were signed.

We choose GIA for our bathroom renovations and couldn’t be happier. Even with Covid lockdown mid Reno things ran as smoothly as they could. Good communication and tidy tradesmen were a plus. Would highly recommend them.

A big thank you to GIA - Ilan, Luke and Carmel for the beautiful bathroom you created and had built for us. All the teams who contributed to the renovation were of the highest standards and we were especially grateful to have our bathroom completed during the difficult lockdown periods we were experiencing in Melbourne. Our small, old bathroom now looks light, spacious, modern and five star.

Kris and Graham

I wanted to upgrade our bathrooms so I met with Carmel Wylie, Interior Designer from Gia Bathrooms and Kitchens. We discussed my brief and budget and then I threw in my wish items.
Not only have Carmel, Luke and the team delivered beautiful bathrooms they have exceeded my expectations and completed by wish items (a laundry and hallway overhaul) and created spaces that spark joy within me all in the middle of a pandemic!
I am truly thrilled with what had been achieved and feel incredibly lucky to live in a space that finally feels like home.
Thank you.

My partner and I have had the pleasure of working with GIA for the past several months as we were preparing to undertake a major renovation to construct our family home. Due to circumstances outside of our control we were unable to proceed with the build, however, we wish to share our experience with GIA to the point of just before signing the contract.

The bottom line is, Illan and his team are true professionals and we could not recommend them more highly. We have found Illan to be communicative, efficient, thorough, adaptable, patient and understanding of the concerns first home renovators like us would have in undertaking their first project of such magnitude. Our experience with other members of Illan’s team is similarly positive - on time, pleasant and polite. Illan’s dedication to our project is a testament to the solid work ethic of this team and we most certainly hope to be able to work with them again in the future. Five stars.