Meet Jill & Kai Pretzell of Das Haus

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jill & Kai Pretzell.

Hi Jill & Kai, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Both Kai and I both got our business degrees from Wichita State University, with emphasis in International Business. I ended up managing a Restoration Hardware straight out of school and remained active in retail and design doing work for Abode Home here in Wichita. Kai fell into kitchen and bathroom remodeling while in college apprenticing for a property investor who was flipping homes and then realized his passion was in design and reimagining spaces. Because Kai is from Germany, we had access to a line of German kitchen cabinets that he loved and we started importing them behind the scenes for word-of-mouth clients who were open to a more modern aesthetic. Fast forward and we realized that we needed a storefront to demo products and serve our clients, and after finding the right location, our store, Das Haus, was born.

We are now among the very first U.S. cities to partner with Nolte Kuechen and are thrilled to bring this amazing line of cabinets not only to Wichita but to the Midwest!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Sometimes a setback is exactly what you need to push forward. The road wasn’t always easy; after buying the building that we now use for our shop, our cabinet supplier in Germany announced their pending retirement. It required us to restructure things completely, and after a period of uncertainty, we partnered with Nolte to become dealers ourselves. It really was a blessing in disguise and pivotal to our ability to run the business.

As you know, we’re big fans of Das Haus, LLC. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
At Das Haus, LLC, we are currently the only Midwestern dealer of Nolte Kuechen which is Germany’s favorite kitchen cabinet line. I run the shop while Kai serves as the creative force behind our designs. After years as a contractor, he literally couldn’t bring himself to serve another client with what he considered to be compromised quality; he also couldn’t separate himself from his German roots with extreme attention to detail, and by nature, a penchant for more modern and sleek looks. He was still frustrated with what was available; modern leaning looks just didn’t have the level of quality that he was looking for. Thus, Das Haus was born out of his passion for German products and European design and his frustration with the options that were available.

Made in Germany is synonymous with innovation, quality, and clever engineering. These cabinets are truly in a class of their own-they dictate the design trends that manufacturers imitate but never duplicate. We are proud to offer clients a line that isn’t an illusion of sleek and modern but the embodiment of modern design and functionality.

Before we go, is there anything else you can share with us?
We are excited to partner with designers, builders, and architects who have a vision for modern design and to be able to support and elevate their vision with a product that not only looks the part but outperforms the norm.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: dashauswichita.com
• Instagram: @das_haus_wichita