Our Company
KOLE MADE is a custom design-and-build company specializing in craft woodworking. Founded by Niko Dyshniku in February 2014, KOLE has served hundreds of clients in the Greater Philadelphia area, and is part of a niche network of local craftspeople.
The KOLE team is composed of dedicated artisan professionals who attend to each project with great care and consideration. We service both residential and commercial projects, performing work that honors the roots of our trade and pushes the boundaries of design to arrive at beautiful, functional spaces.
Our Team
Niko Dyshniku
Founder
Niko Dyshniku founded KOLE MADE in February 2014, and serves in both the Lead Designer and Project Manager roles, working to craft custom designs alongside clients while overseeing projects from start to finish. Immigrating to America at a young age from Albania, Niko infuses the KOLE business ethic with a sense of community prevalent to the culture of smaller European cities. His European heritage and love for sustainability inspired him to study Swiss design during his attendance at the University of the Arts. Niko’s passion for creating innovative products is driven by social interaction and through imagining ideal user experiences.
Ashley Wagner
General Manager
Ashley Wagner joined the KOLE MADE team in February 2020. As the General Manager, she works creatively to facilitate client relations, manage projects, and direct communications. With a background in community development and small business support services, her work is driven by a commitment to local commerce, community building, and the people-planet-profit model of sustainability. A graduate of Tyler School of Art, and a lifelong student, Ashley has a certificate in art history and curatorial methodology from The Barnes Foundation. She proudly serves as adjunct faculty at Temple University in the Planning & Community Development department, where she teaches undergrads about the intersection of the natural and built environments.
Ray Baccari
Shop Lead
Ray Baccari joined the KOLE MADE team in 2021, bringing with him a variety of skills from his artistic and educational practices. In his role as Shop Lead, he leans on his educational background to help mentor and develop the shop team in navigating a wide spectrum of projects. Ray’s creative problem solving abilities help facilitate the highly customized nature of KOLE projects: project prototyping and the development of production techniques are his specialties. Raymond holds a Master of Fine Art with a focus in Sound Sculpture, from Western Carolina University, where he fostered his passion for woodworking and the creative arts. Outside of KOLE, he spends much of his time applying skills learned in the shop to his Germantown home.
Miles Young
Shop Craftsperson
Miles Young began his career as a craftsperson with KOLE MADE in 2021. His focus includes production, fabrication, and finishing and has served as a general practitioner of all things KOLE MADE. Miles is driven to provide clients with the highest quality experience in custom cabinetry and fabrication through his attention to detail and user functionality.
Daniel Haughton
Production Designer
Dan Haughton serves as the Production Designer at KOLE MADE, translating project concepts into technical drawings for the shop team. Dan enjoys tackling unique and challenging designs and transforming abstract concepts into tactile products. With a background in electrical engineering, he looks for creative hardware solutions to enhance the user experience and product function. Prior to working for KOLE, Dan worked as an international cycling guide where he gained an appreciation for providing high-level client experiences. Since returning to Philadelphia, he has found a passion for creating custom and elegant pieces as a part of the talented woodshop team. He joined KOLE in November 2021.
Our Mission
KOLE MADE moves through the custom design experience alongside their clients, rather than designing for them. This enables a collaborative process, the product of which speaks to the unique personalities of their client and the project space. More often than not, KOLE clients return time and time again to develop new projects.
In addition to developing artful products and offering hands-on home remodeling services, KOLE also chooses a few select full-scale projects per year to project-manage, directing construction from start to finish. We make the building process simpler and kinder for our clients so that they have an enjoyable, fulfilling remodel from day one.
Our Facility
The KOLE workshop is located in the Brewerytown neighborhood of Philadelphia, and sits amidst historically-significant factories and warehouses. Our facility shares a roof with numerous other cutting-edge arts organizations with whom we connect and collaborate often. Our environment mirrors KOLE’s interest in community, repurposed materials, and quality craftsmanship.
Our Materials
We use the highest quality hardware on the market, including slow-close drawer slides and soft-close door hinges. We use locally-harvested reclaimed wood whenever possible. Our painted cabinetry is finished with top-of-the-line durable paints for long-lasting beauty.
Our Promise
KOLE products are built-to-last, and we offer a service warranty on all of our products at no additional cost. Committed to sustainable materials and business practices, KOLE uses reclaimed wood and nonhazardous materials whenever possible. Our products are made with home value in mind, and most are transportable should a client move to a new home.
Our Distinctions
