The Improvement Source

Hired these guys to do a build out of office space I was leasing and was not satisfied with the work. The job took much longer, there were problems with there subcontractors that I had to deal with (non-payment and holding me accountable) and way over budget. Was impossible to get a hold of them, the only time they called was to get payment. The painter never even finished and couldn't get a hold of Improvement source to get them to find someone else.

Do Not Hire!!!!!!

Dedrick and his partner are not to be trusted. I fronted them money to complete a renovation, and not a single trades guy showed up. They became impossible to get a hold of. Beware of them.

AWFUL!! Dedric Robinson is A Crook. He is being investigated by Service Alberta and was featured on CBC news for ripping off customers. He keeps changing his companies because of his reputation. He ripped us off for almost $30000. Never showed up when he said.

This company is awful. Dedric Robinson, the owner, came out to our home in June, 2013 to quote on the job for the reno's on the basement. We wanted to build a rec. rm, bathrm, and bedrm. We are seniors and may need to hire live-in-caregivers in the future to assist us. He was an excellent talker and promised the moon. He quoted us $25,000 for the completed project. He explained his contract and wrote out what he was going to do and his pricing. I asked him to provide the permits required for the work and he said that he would take care of it. He asked for 50% down $12,500 plus GST for the purchase of the materials. I signed the contract and asked for a copy. He said he would get it to me. The work started 1 week later and the materials arrived at the same time. Two men came over to get started. They did not draw up any plans and told me that because of the roughed in plumbing, that he would have to build a step into the bathroom to accommodate the plumbing. I told him that they were wrong. I asked about the copy of the contract and he said that he would get it. I asked about the permits again and he said that it was in the works. One of the workers had the knowledge of what was to be done, the project manager did not. The three rooms were framed mainly by only one worker. At the end of the week, I had advanced a worker $300 because he was worried that he was not going to be paid. He was fired by Dedric Robinson. A new Project manager came in and assumed the role and promised that new staff were being hired. The drywall, taping and mudding had to be re-done as it was done incorrectly. Finally a man came to do the drawing of the project to receive a development permit. The electrical permit still had not been issued. I called the City of Edmonton to explain my worry and they sent out an inspector. The inspector came to my home and looked at the work that had been done and immediately put a cease and desist order on the project. The electrician was a second year apprentice and did not have a master or journeyman over him. The electrician also did the plumbing. Communication was an issue. I could never get in touch with Dedric Robinson as his phone did not receive messages. Dedric Robinson came to my house in August to ask for more money. I advanced him another $6,500. Since there were no permits and I still do not have a copy of my contract, the work stopped. In Dec., 2013, the project manager came to our home and told us that he would not be completing the project as per Dedric Robinson's instructions. I filed a complaint with the BBB and Service AB. Dedric Robinson DOES NOT have a pre-paid license and two files have been opened up against Dedric Robinson and the Improvement Source. Now Dedric Robinson has opened another Company called Capitol Restoration. Please be aware of this person. As seniors we cannot afford to complete this project and are left with a terrible mess. I have never received a copy of my contract nor can I contact Dedric Robinson for a refund of the money. I would not recommend this company or any other company that is run by Dedric Robinson. Our life savings are gone due to my inability of not researching more thoroughly.

I hired The Improvement Source to replace shingles on my house this July. I trusted them to do this as I had hired them to also complete a full renovation on a basement suite for myself. As this was a small project, it was not hard to mess up. I asked it be completed while I was home from work but was in no rush to complete it. Mark showed up and was instantly in a big rush to get the roof started. He stripped one half of the roof in an afternoon. What I didn't know is that The Improvement Source hadn't done their homework and checked with suppliers about the accessibility of the shingles. My house sat for 3-4 days without shingles on it. Luckily enough, we didn't experience much rain over period so no hurt no foul right. I had to leave out of town for work and while I was away the replacement was finished. At that point Dedric demanded payment in full, even though eavestroughs were not completed. I requested a dedric invoice or receipt before I sent payment and he responded he would have to get that information from Mark. Eavestroughs were completed and payment was made. Receipt was never sent. I'd be hesitant hiring this company as communication is horrendous if at all. Ensure they provide all legal documentation before signing contract or providing deposit.

As Conrad from Edmonton says this individual CANNOT be trusted......there is a lot of information about him and his companies online and also quite the history of questionable dealings! He also filed for bankruptcy to the tune of $800,000.00 (also information online) and was turned down by the Judge who felt he was not a believable and honest person. Too bad we didn't do more research upfront. Conrad if you see this review, would you please get in touch with me.

He ripped me off and can't be trusted. - See article here for more info on this individual.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/bbb-ratings-queried-after-consumer-loses-money-to-a-contractor-1.2158674

I really appreciated The Improvement Source as they were timely with doing an estimate, which was competitive, and were always friendly and addressed concerns.

The painters were great guys and did a good job, cleaning up nicely and even leaving some extra paint for touch ups.

I would recommend them and use them again, for sure!

Brenda

I had Mr. Dedric Robinson of The Improvement Source in my home on June27, 2013 for an estimate to do removal of wall paper on my landing, to repair damages on my landing walls and other walls and to paint my landing, living room, hall way, 2 bedrooms, and master bath ( walls and ceilings). I got an estimate of $5565.00 from Mr. Robinson and gave him a $2500.00 deposit. Mr. Robinson told me the paint they used was Dulux Life master. The job was to start on Monday July 8, which it did. What a fiasco. a painter by the name of Greg Ricker showed up 1 hour late (both his helpers were waiting for him for and hour.) I could not get hold of Dedric or Gregg. It took 2 1/2 days and damage was done to my ceiling on my landing, the paint that was used was Glidden construction grade paint. No repairs were done and the paint job was poor quality (missed areas). These guys could not remove my spare phone and some storage bags I missed from my hall closet, they just painted over these items and on top of that, they did not even paint the top of the shelf in my hall closet. It is still the same colors as was originally on my walls. No clean up was done, they left my house in a mess. I tried phoning Mr. Robinson several times, got no response, After this Gregg Ricker left on Wednesday as to the very poor quality of job these painters did in my home. I took pictures of all the defects in the painting and have documented all emails sent to this man. It took many e mails to finally get a response from Mr. Robinson. He finally came to inspect the paint job on Monday, July 15, 2013 and did admit that is was poor and revised the estimate for total repair and repainting at that time. I have not heard from the man since then. He does not respond to any of my emails. I have now put in a complaint with the BBB and am in the process of getting estimates from other more reputable painters and Dry wallers, to have the work done properly and professionally. I will be taking this to small claims court if the BBB can not get a total refund of my deposit from this man.

I would warn people away from this Company. They are not reliable or professional. If you need work done do not use this company. Your are better off doing it yourself, wont cost you as much and you would probably do a much better job than I got.

On July 2nd, 2013 I contacted Dedric Robinson of the Improvement Source to do some bathroom plumbing. I asked that he install a tub, and move some vanity lines. I originally requested that he do this by the end of that week (July 5th the latest), as I was having help come to install tile. He said that yes, he could do the work, but would require a $400 deposit to secure the time in their schedule and for any parts costs they may incur during the work. I was wary about giving him money before work was done, and sent him an email about my concerns. He replied that it was standard for his company to do so, and so I email-transfered the money to him. During this correspondence, I asked him if he had accredited plumbers working for him, as his website suggested they do mostly drywall and painting. He told me yes, an accredited plumber would be doing my work.

Friday the 5th of July came, and no one came to do the work. I tried contacting him numerous times to see what was happening, but could not reach him. Later that day, I was contacted by one of his so-called plumbers, who said he would come on Sunday to do the assess the work. This employee came Sunday, and took some measurements. He told me he would do the work Monday evening. This "plumber" did not arrive Monday evening, and so I called him on Tuesday. He told me he no longer felt comfortable doing the work as he was not really a plumber. He told me a plumber from the company would contact me to do the work.

It wasn't until later that week (July 11 or there around) that I was contacted by another employee of the company, who said he was a plumber who would come to do the work on evening that Friday. I agreed with this employee that I would leave work that Friday around noon to meet him to assess the project (once again). He texted me that Friday at approximately 11 am, and told me he was on the other side of the city and probably couldn't make it for noon. When I didn't hear back from him by 1:30 or so, I texted this employee to see if he was still coming, and I have yet to hear back from him. It is now July the 27th.

During all this time, I have attempted to contact Dedric numerous times by phone, text and email. I have left multiple messages on his phone requesting the return of my $400. I have told him that I no longer wanted his services. When I did not hear back from him, I wrote him a lengthy email explaining that I would be filing a complaint with the BBB if he didn't return the money in 2 days. I also told him I would give him horrendous reviews on all the websites I possibly could. Even after all this, I have yet to hear back from him. As far as I'm concerned, he has pretty much stolen $400 from me. I have now filed a complaint with the BBB (Case # 1649509).