A F Alber built 3 Sur La Table upscale cooking store locations — a client that came through an architect referral from the Zumiez program. The referral chain at work.
Sur La Table is a premium specialty retailer of kitchenware, cookware, kitchen tools, and culinary products. Founded in 1972 at Pike Place Market in Seattle, Sur La Table grew into a national brand known for its curated product selection and in-store cooking classes. The stores are designed with an upscale, inviting aesthetic that reflects the quality of the products on the shelves.
A F Alber built 3 Sur La Table retail store locations. These were upscale cooking store build-outs — projects that required a higher level of finish quality, careful product display lighting, demonstration kitchen infrastructure, and the kind of detail work that matches a premium brand environment.
Sur La Table represents the range of A F Alber's retail construction capability — from action sports stores to upscale kitchenware, the fundamentals of good construction don't change.
Sur La Table came through an architect referral — and the architect came from Zumiez.
Murphy Varey, the architect who designed a number of Zumiez stores, had worked with A F Alber on the Zumiez retail build-out program. He knew the quality of A F Alber's work, the reliability of the schedules, and the way the team handled the details that matter to architects — clean execution of design intent, coordination on finishes, and the kind of field communication that keeps a project on track.
When Murphy Varey took on Sur La Table as a client, he referred A F Alber. One client led to one architect led to one more client. It's the same pattern that has defined A F Alber's business since 1987: do the work well, and the work finds you.
This is how the referral chain works at A F Alber. It's not just construction managers who move between brands — it's architects, project managers, and design teams who bring trusted contractors to their next project. The Zumiez-to-Sur La Table connection is a perfect example.
Most people think of referrals as one construction manager recommending a contractor to another. But the referral chain at A F Alber runs through architects, too.
Murphy Varey designed Zumiez stores and worked with A F Alber on the build-outs. When he took on Sur La Table as a design client, he knew exactly who to recommend for construction. The architect had seen A F Alber's work firsthand — the way the team translated design intent into built reality, the reliability of the schedules, and the quality of the finished product.
That's a different kind of trust. An architect's reputation is tied to how a finished space looks and functions. When Murphy Varey recommended A F Alber to Sur La Table, he was staking his own credibility on the quality of A F Alber's execution. That's the strongest referral there is.
