DIY 1 source Jul 6, 5:20 PM EDT Updated 2h ago 0 views

How Imperial Cabinets competes against the big brands

Article excerpt

How Imperial Cabinets competes against the big brands July 6, 2026 | 4:20 pm CDT googletag.cmd.push(function() { // Start by defining breakpoints for this ad. var mapping = googletag.sizeMapping() .addSize([768, 0], [320, 50]) .addSize([480, 0], [320, 50]) .addSize([1366, 0], [970,…

How Imperial Cabinets competes against the big brands July 6, 2026 | 4:20 pm CDT

googletag.cmd.push(function() {

// Start by defining breakpoints for this ad. var mapping = googletag.sizeMapping() .addSize([768, 0], [320, 50]) .addSize([480, 0], [320, 50]) .addSize([1366, 0], [970, 90]) .addSize([992, 0], [728, 90]) .addSize([400, 0], [320, 50]) .addSize([360, 0], [320, 50]) .build();

googletag.slots["js-dfp-tag-wwn-970x90-"] = googletag.defineSlot("//83945039/WWN_970x90", [[970, 90], [320, 50]], "js-dfp-tag-wwn-970x90-")

.addService(googletag.pubads())

// Apply size mapping when there are breakpoints. .defineSizeMapping(mapping) ;

googletag.display('js-dfp-tag-wwn-970x90-'); });

Cabinets

Management

Technology

Closets

FDMC Magazine

How Imperial Cabinets competes against the big brands

Karen M. Koenig

July 6, 2026 | 4:20 pm CDT

Imperial Cabinets & Millwork specializes in custom cabinetry, storage solutions, and countertops in a variety of styles, colors, and materials. 

Imperial Cabinets & Millwork is proof that a mid-size company can be highly successful without being a major national brand. Founded in 2004 by Vitaly Martinov, a former finish carpenter and home builder, the Portland, Oregon-based manufacturer of custom cabinetry, storage solutions, and countertops has expanded across the western United States through a combination of craftsmanship, advanced machining technology, strong employee relations, and social media outreach.

Although Martinov died in 2025, his legacy and leadership efforts continue with his wife, Elena, the current CEO/owner, plus family, and team of roughly 80 employees, many of whom have been with the company for decades. Together they comprise the “Imperial Family,” a bond that extends beyond the workplace environment. Many in the company have Slavic or European roots, which also connects them.

Client connections Since its beginning, Imperial Cabinets has had a reputation for quality craftsmanship, and customer referrals and connections have been integral to its growth.  

“Word of mouth is one of the strongest referrals, and the more work we’re doing in different areas, the more people are hearing about us,” said Mark Bejan, who oversees Business Development & Estimating. “We’ve also expanded in the last year or two through social media.” 

One Instagram post in particular, a Valentine’s Day video, garnered more than 1 million views and grew the company’s followers 35-fold. “It gets the brand exposure, and we’re getting a lot more call-ins too [through the website and social media], which along with word of mouth, has been really good.”

Residential projects comprise 80 percent of the company’s business, ranging in size from full-home renovations to single items/areas.  

Currently, about 80 percent of the projects are residential and range from full-home renovations, including the kitchen, mudroom, pantry, bathroom, and other living areas, to single areas. “No project is too small or too big,” Bejan said. “We do a good amount of just kitchen remodels [but] typically, it’s a full home package…multiple rooms focused around the kitchen as the main area.”

The process begins with a discussion of design and details and, if local, a showroom visit, with kitchens and other vignettes for inspiration. The company’s website, imperialcabinets.net, also features portfolios of contemporary, transitional, traditional, and other projects.

KCD software is used to create 3D renderings for approval. “I think that’s one area where we stand out a lot,” Bejan said. “We’ll do really nice 3D renderings for every single customer, no matter the size of the project.” 

Imperial Cabinets offers face frame and frameless cabinetry in a variety of door styles, decorative surfaces, paint, and stain colors. Finishing is done in-house, with the capability for custom-matching colors and stains, noted Roman Frantchuk, general manager. “We are flexible, to do whatever the customer desires.”

Frantchuk noted the popularity of rift white oak, quarter-sawn walnut, and clear alder. The company is also seeing a growing demand for TFL. Materials are typically sourced locally from mills in the Pacific Northwest, with FSC-certified lumber and NAUF panels also available. 

“Every year, we’re trying to put out something new or develop a new product, something that people would want, to stay ahead of the game,” he added.

Stylish custom storage solutions include high-end walk-in closets.

Once the design and details are approved, on-site measurements are finalized. “We’re always going to do our own final measurements,” Bejan said. “Even for out-of-town jobs, we’ll have someone fly out, meet the owners [and] contractors, and do a final walkthrough and measurements, for every single project, to make sure everything’s dialed in.”  

To ensure a cohesive experience, the sales team serves as project managers for the entire process, from design through production, to final delivery. “You have one contact,” Bejan noted. “He’s also the person running the project with you, walking through the job site after installation, scheduling a punching service if necessary, and making sure you’re satisfied.” 

All products,including cabinet boxes, doors and drawers, are manufactured in-house. 

Production process The 75,000-square-foot facility includes offices, a showroom, and the production area, plus an additional building nearby. At any given time, the shop handles 50 to 60 projects of varying sizes and complexity, with an average turnaround time of six to eight weeks, Frantchuk noted.

Once the contract is signed and specifications verified “for the whole project, from A to Z,” cutlists are created for the CNC, door, drawer box, specialty, and other departments, with each department also reviewing the entire project as part of the quality control process. “So, if I’m a door guy, I’m not just producing doors, I’m actually looking at the full picture of the job,” Frantchuk explained. It starts in the CNC area, where two SCM Morbidelli routers with fully optimized tables for preloading and unloading are the workhorses. “[They] basically produce almost three times more than what a regular CNC does.” 

“When it comes to all of our construction of the cabinet boxes, everything is blind dado. It’s actually our norm at Imperial that every piece gets cut on a CNC with a blind dado,” Frantchuk added. Sides are made with 3/4-inch material, and cabinet backs are 1/2 to 3/4 inch, depending on the material used.

Key equipment used at Imperial Cabinets includes the SCM Morbidelli CNC routers.

“When it comes to super custom cabinet boxes, we can also build them,” he continued. “We’ve built [some] as big as 14 feet tall or 22 feet long because of the style of a cabinet that people demanded. So, there are no limits for us; we will do whatever it takes as long as we can get into the building.”

In another area, mouldings and other solid wood components are machined on the Weinig moulder. Also integral in the Door Department are the Stiles/Vertongen Pentho Compact 4 slot and tenon machine for making corner joints, and an SCM/Omal Miter CNC round end tenon machine for stiles and rails.

“We have some cool custom door profiles that are over 1-inch thick,” Bejan added. “It really creates a nice effect … we’ve designed a lot of our own custom doors as well.”

Also integral in the Door Department is the Stiles/Vertongen Pentho Compact 4 slot and tenon machine for making corner joints.

Dovetail drawers are also made in-house. Integral machines in the Drawer Department include SCM/Omal Insert and HBD drilling, gluing and dowel inserters, and a Macoser/Omec CNC dovetailer and Omec gluing machine. Other machines in the shop include SCM Stefani and Olimpic edgebanders, Colonial Saw/Striebig panel saws, a Powermatic planer, and Cantek, Timesavers, and SCMI belt sanders. The company uses Blum and Salice hardware in its products.

Once production is completed, the quality control department reviews the project, and a final cross-check is done to ensure the customer is ready for delivery.  

“What we learned from Vitaly [is] to be very honest with your work and really take care of the customer,” said Bejan. “Have really good integrity and build something that you want to stand behind, that you enjoy, that you believe in. And when you love your product, and you stand by it, it’s very easy to sell it.” 

A commitment to community service is another legacy from Vitaly that Elena and the company continue today. “Vitaly would always say, I’m here to help you out,” Bejan said. “He was amazing.” 

Have something to say? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.

Production Efficiency

Trends & Innovations

About the author

Karen Koenig

| Editor

Karen M. Koenig has more than 35 years of experience in the woodworking industry, including visits to wood products manufacturing facilities throughout North America, Europe and Asia. As senior editor, her responsibilities include writing and editing for Woodworking Network publications FDMC Magazine and Closets & Organized Storage Magazine, as well as the website. She also oversees many of Woodworking Network's special projects and programs, including Red Book: Resource Guide for Best Practice, FDMC 300, 40 Under 40, and the Wood Industry Market Leaders. She can be reached at karen.koenig@woodworkingnetwork.com.

`j`	Next card
`k`	Previous card
`r`	Read more on focused card
`?`	Show this help