Bill and Elizabeth Nash

The Hearth is the Home

story by ERIN WALLACE                  photos by SUSAN DELOACH

Whether it’s seeing a pack of dolphins majestically swimming when you are downtown or driving through neighborhoods filled with magical mossy oaks that sway in the breeze, Beaufort is no stranger to natural beauty. In addition to this beauty in nature that seems to have no limit in the Lowcountry, we, humans, have contributed our own beautiful creations in this land. Tourists and locals alike tend to pause and relish the beauty of so many homes, old and new, that we have built here. The architecture intentionally points to certain styles popular in South Carolina: Plantation Style, Charleston Single House, Lowcountry Cottage Style, Craftsman-inspired Beach Cottage, and Coastal Style Beach House, all uniquely urging the viewer to savor these beautiful handiworks.

However, style isn’t the only major selling point for these homes; it is the interior portion that quite literally brings the home to life. The exterior style of a house can invoke a delicious wonder, compelling you to imagine what cozy rooms are encased within the beautiful outside frame. In our town, there is a group whose business is creating one of the most integral rooms inside a home where life tends to happen the most: the kitchen. Kitchen Tune-Up (KTU) is a company dedicated to building dream kitchen upgrades people have always pined for at reasonable costs! KTU’s website states: “Your kitchen project, your style and your design are of utmost importance to us at Kitchen Tune-Up. In order to ensure we are doing everything we can to deliver for you, we have set high expectations for our customer service. We apply our trustpoints (arrive on time, listen carefully, respect your home, provide solutions, and above all, we communicate) to every kitchen project to ensure your expectations are not only met, but exceeded. It’s our priority to guarantee that you have total confidence in our ability to take care of YOU and your home.”

So, who exactly is taking care of your home in this exceptional way? Well, it is none other than owners Bill and Elizabeth Nash of KTU, Beaufort! A power couple who transforms kitchens in the most personable fashion as they intentionally guide their customers every single step of the way as they update, upgrade, and uplift.

Bill and Elizabeth (Liz) are proud residents of beautiful Beaufort, SC. Originally from Sylvan Lake, Michigan, for Liz and Pontiac, Michigan, for Bill, the high school sweethearts duo have lived in more places than you can count on one hand due to military life: Japan, Hawaii, North Carolina, Virginia, and the list goes on. Their love story is one for the ages as they knew they were destined to be together right off the bat when they met in tenth grade! Soon after graduating high school, Bill enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1988, and the two would go on next to get married in 1989; Bill was 18, and Liz was 19. It really is true when they say, “You know when you know.” Fresh in love and fresh from boot camp, Bill was proudly selected as honor graduate and also became a Lance Corporal. The couple discovered Beaufort when Bill was first stationed at Parris Island in 1993, where he served as a drill instructor and senior drill instructor. In fact, they have lived in Beaufort a total of four times throughout their military career and have watched the changes and growth within the Lowcountry, all while falling deeper in love with the community each time. Deep down, they could always see Beaufort as a place they would eventually return to. As Liz says, “We may be northern by birth but southern by soul!” Bill retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in 2019, with his last duty station being right back here at Parris Island!

Bill and Liz have one son, Nathaniel, who was made in Japan but born in the USA, they like to say. Their pride and joy, who just graduated from Beaufort Academy at only 17 (just like Bill), will be attending college at USC Columbia this coming fall and studying International Business. Liz and Bill are incredibly overjoyed to still have Nathaniel close to them. For Liz, she is most proud of being a “career military spouse” as that has been her greatest joy next to the birth of Nathaniel. If that’s not impressive enough, Liz graduated from Johnson & Wales University Charleston in 2001 with a degree in Culinary Arts. Liz also worked at The Beaufort Inn prior to getting orders to Iwakuni, Japan, in 2003, where she taught American cooking to Japanese housewives in their home as well as English to elementary-
aged children.

After 31 years of honorable service to the United States Marine Corps, the Nashes decided to open the area’s first Kitchen Tune-Up in July 2022. Upon opening their business, Bill and Liz literally hit the ground running. With no shortage of clients wanting to upgrade the heart of the home, their workload has been heavy. When the Nashes aren’t hard at work growing their company, they are enjoying traditional SC cuisine, family time, boating, fishing, shrimping off their dock, relaxing at the sand bar, and everything the Lowcountry has to offer. The couple truly believes that the southern charm of this historic area, they so lovingly call home, is filled with some of the friendliest people around, and this is exactly why they’ve made this place their forever home.

What distinguishes KTU from other remodeling companies is that they are efficient, meaning your new kitchen will be done faster than you think because often they are already using the basic ingredients you currently have in your kitchen. Their secret recipe is a combination of conscientious planning. It doesn’t end there as their business model brings forth upgrades for various investment levels; in other words, kitchen remodeling doesn’t have to cost a fortune like it tends to in today’s world. This is because with KTU, four of their five services involve updating the cabinets that are already in place: Refacing, Redooring, Cabinet Painting, and their Original Tune-Up. They focus on wisely stewarding the elements of the house that simply need updates. For those customers who want a complete change, KTU’s final core service offers new cabinetry. Furthermore, KTU sources American-made cabinets and doors, refacing materials, under cabinet lighting, hardware, and backsplash tiles, as well as a plethora of storage solutions. They can also assist in the coordination of countertop and appliance installation.

In addition, Bill and Liz are flexible in coming up with a game plan that meets their clients right where they are at in their remodeling journey. Since KTU has been updating kitchens for over 36 years, their overall experience is top-notch as they are “tunifying” the aspects of a kitchen that truly need the love. Lastly, KTU distributes proposals, not estimates, because one of the difficulties with traditional remodeling projects is that the final price can creep up after the project starts. The Nashes avoid this by giving their clients detailed proposals before the project even begins, and they stick to it. Thus, no surprises, no unexpected expenses, and everything is in writing, so a client never has to wonder and walks away confident in their decision. After all, well-communicated teamwork makes the dream work!

The way this company has been spearheaded by the Nashes with such dedication, passion, and professionalism is a true testament to the fact that Beaufort is the perfect community for their work ethic. You could say that this town has a healthy way of drawing in the best of the best, which is exactly what you want in a tight-knit community. In the Nashes own words, they write, “KTU Beaufort is a proud veteran-owned and operated business that is committed to the personal and professional development of our team members for the benefit of our customers and our community. We are focused on providing high quality products and top-notch services at cost-effective prices while creating a positive kitchen improvement experience.” High quality is right, if you make your way over to
www.kitchentuneup.com, you can see all the kitchen makeovers they’ve done so far that will leave you in awe. Bill and Liz’s future goal for the company is to bring on more staff, so they can expand even more into the community. The pair currently work well over full-time hours, which can be exhausting of course, but with their love for the community, it would turn out that making a difference in the lives of their fellow neighbors’ homes gets them out of bed each and every day, ready to joyfully do it all over again!