Chez Soi

Project goal

It was a strong desire of the client to have Align provide a transparent process that allowed them to maximize value through a tender process. Everyone got excited about reusing and repurposing original elements of the building to let it tell the unique story that 100 + years of use naturally does. Like any business the transition from construction to operation was important. Align prepared a schedule that gave them lead times that allowed them to maximize the transition. 

Services

It all started with a hair cut!! Align was referred to this client when she was talking about her dreams for the space while giving a hair cut in her home-based studio. What happened next saw Align get involved to work through the regulatory pathway to make this dream a reality. A challenge in many communities is the transition of use as they mature. Residential neighbourhoods transitioning to commercial spaces.     

This character home is one of the oldest in Cochrane built in 1912. It had already been moved once in its lifespan and now sat in a viable location to support transition to a one-of-a-kind aesthetic services salon.  Align co-ordinated the team to complete a change of use application with the municipality and then followed up with the design services to renovate the space into a functional space for their business needs. A beautiful addition on the main floor expanded the hair salon’s stations into the mature back yard, tightly tied to the capacity for parking it was a balancing act to maximize the potential of this space.        

Sweat equity was a theme, the client jumped in with both feet, sanding the old doors to perfection,   stripping layers of paint from the original handrail and completing demolition in preparation for the work to commence. The results are stunning, repurposing materials from the renovation both inside and out preserved the character of the space while serving as a reminder of the process that went into the transformation. Like Foxy Box it is our greatest joy to hear our clients reflect on how the space unlocked the potential of their dreams for the business. Chez Soi continues to thrive today, the space supporting the needs of those making their living within it.   

Promoter score

9.7 / 10