Ever since he opened Coastal Countertops in Statesboro back in 1979, Dana McLendon has not only produced some of the highest quality countertops and cabinets in South Georgia, he also has looked for different ways to use his expertise in woodworking to bring unique products to the local market.
Back in 2020, a California businessman contacted McLendon with an unusual idea that he jumped on. Now McLendon and his crew at Coastal produce the wood cabinets that house free-standing arcade video games like “Ms. Pac-Man” or “Galaga.”
And for McLendon’s latest idea, he wants to show the versatility of laminate as much more than just for flooring.
“We’re doing something that’s never been done before,” he said. “We’re building a showroom house where everything is built with laminate. We’ll have wood flooring, but every room in the house from the kitchen to the bedrooms and bathrooms will be laminate. Laminate wall coverings for every room in the house, as well. All the doors, windows. The showroom is being built in our warehouse across the street from our main facility (on Hill St.).”
The showroom was nearly complete in January when a fire started in one of the rooms, McLendon said. He expects the house to be ready to show to builders and customers in the next month or so. While he recognizes a fully “laminate” house like he is building would not be financially practical for most people, he said he wanted to create a “show house of possibilities.”
“A whole house could be done, but that would definitely get expensive,” he said. “I think people would like to have that ability to do something totally different on one wall in a room or on different walls throughout the house. The pattern and color availability is endless. We have some wood grain in there, funky patterns. Folks could really be creative.
“Also, you can easily clean it like you clean a countertop. It would be great for a kid’s bedroom. Then they could write all over the walls and all you got to do is 409 it and wipe it off.”
McLendon said his crew would work with builders and homeowners in customizing the laminate according to what they want. Laminate would be put on plywood during the construction process and would take the place of sheet rock that is normally put over plywood and painted.
He said laminate on walls even offers better insulation than sheet rock.
“I think a lot of the draw would probably be people doing one wall in a room,” McLendon said. “It gives a creative option that hasn’t been there. One wall could be done in a funky pattern. Or some teal-colored wood grain that you can’t tell is not wood. I think that’s where much of the draw would be – to use it as an accent wall.”
And Mclendon explained why he built an entire showroom house out of laminate.
“I’ve had quite a few conversations with developers and builders,” he said. “They like the concept but it was difficult to explain what it would look like. It’s the kind of thing where if you don’t see what it looks like it’s hard to really understand.
“It will be a showroom where people can go look at it and say “that would be kind of cool.’”
To learn more about laminate, call Coastal Countertops at (912) 764-3561.