There’s been a lot going on in the Freeform world in the past two years — we love being busy and solving problems! You may remember that at the beginning of 2022, we merged with Freeform in Spokane (formerly Contract Resource Group – CRG). As a result, we welcomed Fernando and his team to the Business Interiors of Idaho (BII) team and officially adopted the Freeform name across our locations. You can read more about the what and why behind our Spokane merger here. We learned an immense amount through the process, which expanded our product knowledge, improved our operations, and ultimately allowed us to build a stronger, more diverse team to better serve our customers across the region.
The partnership and learnings from our Freeform merger segue us perfectly to the present moment, as we are excited to announce that we have acquired Brutzman’s Office Solutions in the Tri-Cities. While we made things official with the Brutzman family on March 1, we need to rewind a bit to understand how we got to this point. My parents (Mark & Betty Heath) have known Ken and Kathy Brutzman for nearly as long as we have been a Haworth dealer – more than 30 years. Many Haworth dealers in our region have come and gone over that time, but Brutzman’s and Freeform have been mainstays in the Inland Northwest for decades.
We are excited to announce that we have acquired Brutzman’s Office Solutions in the Tri-Cities.
Jeff with Ken, Kathy, and Keith Brutzman on March 1.
I began chatting with Ken about his long-term succession plan in 2020 to determine how our team could help maintain the long-term success and support of past, current, and future customers in the Tri-Cities while ensuring that the Brutzman’s legacy continues. We discovered deep similarities between our family businesses—both having long tenures in our respective cities, sharing many of the same values and the unwavering support of our communities, employees, and those impacted by our work.
As anyone in our region knows, the Inland Northwest is a challenging geography to support—businesses are very different from those found in coastal cities, often with different budgets, drivers, and needs. Additionally, transporting products, providing services, and fulfilling warranties across our broad mountainous geography, as well as finding talented people knowledgeable of our unique industry to do so, can be incredibly challenging. The Brutzman’s team is the last tie in the railroad to link the Tri-Cities to our Spokane and Boise locations. It allows much broader connection between the often-under-served rural cities in Idaho, Eastern Oregon, and Eastern Washington. It also allows us to share design knowledge and support, install labor and practices, and run a more efficient and capable organization that will enable us to pass along those efficiencies and savings to our customers.
So What About…? A Quick FAQ to Answer the Rest of Your Burning Questions
Do we still get to work with the same people?
Absolutely! We have worked hard to build great teams and we want to keep them together. The Tri-Cities team will continue to work out of the Richland location, and the merger will allow Tri-Cities customers to benefit from the organization’s expanded capabilities, shared resources, efficiencies, and purchasing power.
Are my quotes still valid?
If they are still within the date range defined on your quote, you’re good to go! Please reach out to your project contact if your quote is over 30 days old.
What is going to happen to my current orders?
All current orders will be fulfilled as they always have been.
Are our warranties still valid?
We are as committed as ever to supporting our installed client base. We are still just a phone call away to resolve any warranty claim.
Who do I make my payments to and where do I send payment?
Eventually, payments will need to be made to Freeform, but for now, you can make payments to either Brutzman’s or Freeform, and we will get it sorted out. Please send all future payments to 176 S. Capitol Blvd. Boise, Idaho 83702. Don’t worry if you forget — we will make sure it finds the bank account 😉
We are incredibly excited to introduce the greater Freeform team to the Tri-Cities community, working alongside Ken, Kathy, and everyone else at Brutzman’s, and share where we can support the local community, companies, governments, healthcare providers, and non-profits. We are eager to begin new relationships that we know will last a lifetime and, as our core purpose says, ‘Create Culture, Build Community, and Enrich Lives’ in the Tri-Cities region and even more so across our expanded Inland Northwest Territory.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to me directly at jeff@freeformspaces.com.
Yours,
