Fixture Studio condensed its far-flung operations into two units at Independence Plaza

Tim Harty, The Business Times

When Jeff and Jami Huber bought Fixture Studio in the fall of 2022, having fixture in its name didn’t apply to the company’s purpose or location.

The business was all over the place in terms of the work it did: design; construction; short-term rentals; commercial maintenance.

And it literally was all over the Grand Valley map in terms of where it was located.

“They were housing themselves in anybody’s garage, just kind of farming the stuff out,” Jami Huber said.

So, the Hubers gradually reined things in, which brings them to today and a more focused business and a reduction of locations and distance between them. In fact, with Fixture Studio’s main office moving to 1048 Independent Ave., Unit A-101, in late February, its two buildings are a stone’s throw from each other. Each is housed in one of the two large commercial buildings, A and B, that comprise Independence Plaza.

Fixture Studio will celebrate its move April 9 with the Grand Junction Area Chamber of Commerce on hand for a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

With the previous setup having one location at 600 Rood Ave. and another at 2872 I-70 Business, Jami said, “It just becomes kind of cumbersome to go back and forth between the two.”

She said they invested “a good six months,” trying to find a place where they could put everybody under one roof, “which is pretty challenging in this market. And this location, we liked it because of its convenience to a lot of things and its visibility.

“And we had the opportunity, since we couldn’t get all under one roof, we could literally get a building apart. The construction office (529 25 1/2 Road, Unit B-107) is just across the alley, so we can get the warehouse and that office, and we can be right here (Unit A-101). So that’s one of the reasons we really chose this location, because it was as close as we could possibly get to each other and just be able to literally run one minute between each other.”

Another key to maximizing its new locations was selling off the short-term rental division of Fixture Studio, “which also allowed us to condense the warehouse space that we needed, which helped this transition as well,” Jami said.

The visibility, being at the front of Independence Plaza’s Building A, facing Independent Avenue, is outstanding, and it draws the eyes of motorists going to or leaving ever-busy Sam’s Club to the west.

It’s the kind of visibility that gets passers-by to wonder who you are and what you do.

In Fixture Studio’s case, it still does a lot, but at its core, it is a design and construction business that currently keeps extremely busy with remodels. But it also can build from the ground up, and it does residential and commercial construction.

Having design and construction with one company, Jeff said, is “a really great value proposition. … We have design and our construction crew under one roof, one team, so they are deeply integrated.”

He said that makes the level of communication and coordination as good as it can be, “because we are all one team and trying to achieve that outcome. So, we have the design intent and understanding and all that has gone into that. And then that becomes practical when we get into construction. … When you can have that tight coordination between both functions is when you can really achieve a fantastic outcome and a much better experience for our clients. That’s our goal at least.”

The Hubers said it’s easy for people to think they don’t need a designer, but they beg to differ, because they’ve seen and heard the mistakes people make. Mistakes that could have been avoided.

“One of the biggest things we will get is people who started a renovation without design, or without design help, and get about one-third of the way through it and just lose steam, because they are unaware of how many answers need to be given,” Jami said.

Design is much more than picking out paint and light fixtures and floor coverings.

“That’s part of the process, and it’s one of a million decisions that get made, Jami said. “But design is really more about maximizing a budget. It’s making sure that the materials that are being chosen are effective for your lifestyle.”

Jeff added, “It’s how the space is utilized, what the lifestyle is you’re trying to achieve or what’s important in that phase of your life.”

For example, Jami said Fixture Studio tries to help people think through when the kids are gone in five years and what they want their space to be then.

“We can help you design the hard stuff,” she said. “We try to help people think through what they want to do with their homes more than just this year.”

Jami said design is kind of an education process for people, too.

“It’s understanding how design can actually not only maximize a budget, make everything more affordable, but also increase your happiness with the project,” she said.