Owned by husband and wife team, Rotem and Troy Lamsee, Ace of Space Interiors is a Design-Build-Renovate-Decorate studio in Toronto since 2015, offering a one-stop-shop for all home building and home improvement needs. Ace of Space Interiors maintains a solid portfolio ranging from new builds and additions to interior design and renovations, specializing in gut renovations in Toronto homes with a focus on smart space planning for better living. Believing in the power of imagination and creativity when it comes to designing spaces, Ace of Space is committed to delivering interior design solutions that go beyond aesthetics and truly transform spaces, making them functional, beautiful, and meaningful for clients. Ultimately, this results in an elevated quality of life, revitalized homes, and spaces that are functional, stylish, and tailored to the unique needs and lifestyle of each client. They were recently featured on HGTV’s competition show Renovation Resort hosted by Scott Mcgillivray and Bryan Baeumler, where they were crowned champions of the first season.
Tell us about yourself?
I am a licensed renovator and real estate agent with a passion for providing homeowners with a complete experience from real estate purchase to general contracting and renovation services. I am Chinese-Trinidadian-Danish by birth and have been a passionate entrepreneur since 1998. After owning various businesses, including a double-decker sightseeing tour company in the city, I found my passion for renovating and carpentry under the support of my father-in-law and wife, Rotem.
I am passionate about tennis and greatly admire tennis legend and 20-time Grand Slam champion, Roger Federer. I am also a true believer in ‘do good, be good’, and I try to live by that motto.
My background is in marketing. I knew from a very young age that I wanted to be an entrepreneur, so when an opportunity presented itself, I co-founded a double-decker sightseeing tour company with a friend. We started with enough money to purchase one bus and grew it into a multi-million dollar company. We had a fleet of buses and 50 employees. It was a great business. During this time is when I met Rotem. She was an art director at the time, and while we were dating, I hired her to revamp our company branding. It was only after we got married and bought our first home (which needed a renovation) in 2008 that I realized my passion for fixing things. Together with my father-in-law, who happens to be a contractor, we worked magic to bring the house back to life while renovating it from top to bottom. This turned out to be the first of many renovation projects, as I ended up catching the renovation bug. Being able to build a beautiful roof over my own head and that of my family was incredibly empowering. I sold my double-decker tour company to a competitor and began renovating full-time. Rotem and I found great real estate opportunities (most of them were dilapidated), and like our first home, we poured our hearts into giving them a new life. People, including our friends, started noticing our work and designs and eventually began to ask us to renovate their homes. It was then that Rotem and I decided we wanted to help as many people as we can to realize their home’s potential. We got serious about interior design and made a business out of it. I got my renovator’s license and started a Design-Build business with Rotem – Ace of Space Interiors. The rest is history!
If you could go back in time a year or two, what piece of advice would you give yourself?
If I could go back in time a year or two, I’d tell myself to continue embodying the “be good, and do good” philosophy. It’s particularly relevant when you run a business because being and doing good means having integrity. This is going to affect you positively throughout your life. I genuinely believe that good things happen to good people and that you are going to reap the rewards if you treat people with respect and honesty. Throughout my career, I’ve worked with many partners (architects, sub-contractors, builders, etc.), and I learnt that people always look to hire professionals with integrity. There are a lot of people in the trade who don’t possess that quality. For a short period of time, there could be small wins (without integrity), but if you want success over a longer period of time, I believe in the importance of grounding yourself in being a good person because people are going to hear about it and want to work with you.
What problem does your business solve?
Ace of Space Interiors specializes in space planning. Our renovation projects breathe new life into spaces, revitalizing homes and creating spaces that are functional, stylish, and tailored to the unique needs and lifestyles of each client. Committed to delivering top-notch quality craftsmanship in every renovation project, we maintain uncompromising standards in our materials, finishes, and workmanship, ensuring that the renovated space is built to last and meets the highest quality standards. Ultimately, we are more than just a renovation service provider; we see ourselves as trusted partners in helping clients achieve renovation success, helping them renew their homes and fall in love with their spaces, new or old.
What is the inspiration behind your business?
The inspiration behind our business is to provide smart and creative space planning for our clients while bringing forth beautiful esthetics for visual satisfaction. We believe that organization within one’s home can really affect their mood, and Ace of Space is here to make sure that your space can accommodate your things to the best of our ability and ultimately better your everyday life, thus contributing to a happy society. As mentioned above, I fell in love with renovation and interior design when I worked on my first home with Rotem and my father-in-law. Every project that Rotem and I have taken on since then and since starting Ace of Space has served as an inspiration and a lesson for us. Our clients, our partners, and the trust that they put in us motivate us every day to push the boundaries of our creativity, commitment, and sense of excellence as we take Ace of Space Interiors to the next level. We understand the importance of maximizing the value of a home through strategic renovations and collaborate closely with our clients to understand their vision for their home and translate it into reality through thoughtful and creative renovation solutions.
What is your magic sauce?
Rotem and I are people pleasers. We are happy when we make our clients happy, so through our renovation journey, we have learned how to accommodate budgets, solve problems, and achieve ideal spaces for our clients. Being a family business, we have shared overheads. This allows us to be very competitive with our pricing and eliminate third-party markups, unlike most in the business. I believe that we stand out in the marketplace because of our desire to help and the understanding that every client is unique, and knowing that we offer customized design solutions tailored to each individual, careful to fit various budgets. We place our clients at the center of our design process, actively involving them in every step of the way because we believe in building relationships that last and are based on trust, transparency, and mutual respect. As a testament to our commitment to excellence and innovative design solutions, I am proud to say that Ace of Space has received recognition for our work through multiple design awards from prestigious associations like Decorators & Designers Association of Canada and National Kitchen & Bath Association.
What is the plan for the next 5 years? What do you want to achieve?
Our plan for the next five years is to keep plugging away. We have lined up some big exciting projects and are looking forward to completing them. One special project that is three years in the making is our own lakefront cottage in Kawartha Lakes. We’ve been so busy with clients that we have struggled to find time to focus on our project, but we will finally be breaking ground this year and are looking forward to creating memories with the kids within the next few years. The one big goal both Rotem and I have is we would like to start working with charitable organizations to help people in need. We’re hoping to collaborate with Raising the Roof Canada in helping homeless adults and youths get a roof over their heads while also learning a trade! It’s been a dream of Rotem’s since she was 18, and I am more than happy to help her accomplish it.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced so far?
The biggest challenge I have faced so far is not being able to accommodate the demand we’ve experienced. Younger generations that are entering the workforce are not choosing the trades, which is resulting in trade shortages, and this creates a problem when trying to scale. Rotem and I would love to be able to help every client that reaches out to us, and that has been a challenge.
How can people get involved?
Ace of Space is a one-stop-shop providing many services, so if you are looking for your forever home, looking to renovate your current home, or simply looking for a kitchen or bathroom remodel, feel free to reach out. We’d love to help! You can keep up-to-date on what Ace of Space is doing on our website and our Instagram page.