Lokahi Stone, Honolulu, Hawaii
Inspired by Fu-Tung Cheng’s landmark book, “Concrete Countertops,” Andrew Simon and Jamie McGuire quit their corporate jobs and went into business for themselves in Honolulu in 2003.
Their seven-person company, Lokahi Stone, quickly filled a niche in Hawaii’s thriving construction industry. The company specializes in custom-made concrete countertops and sinks, furniture and flooring. Lokahi Stone’s work is sometimes embellished with imprints of native ferns or inlays based on ancient Hawaiian petroglyphs, touches that ground the finished product in the place it was created. Concrete Decor interviewed Andrew Simon to learn about the company and the state of decorative concrete in Hawaii.
Jamie and I were both caught up in the corporate culture of a major international construction engineering firm. My background was in project controls, finance and accounting. Jamie’s focus was engineering and project management. It was the end of another overseas contract that got our minds thinking about what’s next — continue as cogs in the machine, or break the mold and begin anew?
Jamie’s field-management experience and his experience as a tradesman working with concrete enabled Lokahi Stone to obtain a general contracting license. My experience in project controls enabled us to effectively manage the company from the financial and business perspective. Our mix of talents and our shared focus on creativity make for a very effective partnership. Having acquired a passion for the ocean and warm weather from our previous experience working contracts in the islands of the Pacific, we decided to form Lokahi Stone in trade-wind and sun-drenched Hawaii.
Business is booming right now. With the way real estate is all over the islands, many families are remodeling their homes with proceeds from refinancing. And a lot of people are returning to the simplicity of concrete flooring after years of wall-to-wall carpeting. Concrete floors are easy to maintain and cool to the touch — perfect for our climate and lifestyle.
It’s catching on in the islands thanks to increased press and familiarity with the medium. Hawaii is influenced by the mainland through tourism and the many people who move here from places where decorative concrete reigns supreme. I can’t count the number of times someone sees our showroom and exclaims, “I saw this floor in San Francisco and always wanted it in my home!” Or: “Do you guys do work in Arizona? I saw this countertop at a restaurant there. You must have made it!”
Our showroom, which is attached to our studio/workshop, is always a work in progress. It’s about 800 square feet, and has many examples/vignettes displaying our floors and countertops. Three rooms show different scenarios of floor treatments, from acid staining on an aged warehouse floor through overlay products and stamped concrete. Each room also displays concrete counters of every shape, size and color. Local artists display their work on the walls, from pop-art paintings to locally built surfboards.
To reach homeowners we have been marketing our company through a local remodeling magazine. However, our main focus is designers, architects and builders. This requires more than advertising, and requires time spent in introductions and networking, as well as word of mouth, et cetera. Oftentimes we are called upon by architectural firms to make presentations about our product and its uses. Although concrete is by no means new to the islands, decorative concrete is.
Commercially we have done work for Starbucks and Jamba Juice, as well as other established businesses. Residentially, some of our more notable jobs involved poured-in-place shower stalls, concrete sinks, and ground, integrally colored floors similar to terrazzo.
I don’t really have a preference, but most of our work is cast off site in our studio. This method allows for greater quality control, versatility and expression. Forms can be made in the studio that are impossible to make on site, where most pieces are finished with a trowel. Three-dimensional works — inlays, drain-boards, bowls, et cetera — are more easily achieved and more beautifully executed in our studio.
That said, you can’t beat the massiveness of a large, poured-in-place, monolithic piece. However, that look does not come without a cost. Poured-in-place work requires a client who is willing to have forms, workers and a mess in their home for a while. If at all possible, large monolithic pours should take place when construction is in its early stages.
Often, our poured-in-place walls and surrounds are topped with off-site cast counters — the best of both worlds.
|
