Some people say “bigger is better,” but Scott Laing, owner of Bath Resource and Design in southwest suburban La Grange, believes smaller is special. Proud owners of the bathrooms he has installed agree with him.
“There are so many products on the market today, so many things for the homeowner to see and consider, that choices can become a mind-boggling burden,” he says. “When I decided to expand my business by opening a retail shop, I wanted to showcase bathroom-only fixtures and accessories and keep the displays small and uncluttered so visitors would be able to focus on product design and quality. That’s hard to do in a big, barnlike structure.”
As a teenager, Laing had thought about becoming an auto mechanic, a somewhat unusual choice for a student attending college-focused Niles North High School, he says.
“I’m a hands-on guy who likes to solve problems by taking things apart and putting them back together. Going on to college was never really a serious consideration; I was eager to get right into the world of building better things.”
After high school graduation he found employment not as an auto mechanic, but as a plumber. While working on a new residential development, he met Henry Blackwell, a veteran tile setter, who asked young Laing if he would like to learn the trade.
“I jumped at the chance. Henry was an old-timer, a real pro who took great pride in doing meticulous work. I worked with him for six months, learning how to install ceramic and marble, went on to finish my apprenticeship, and then took a job with a tile company,” Laing says.
In late 1990, he set up his own shop as a ceramic and stone contractor, working mainly out of his home office, showing customers product via catalogs and developing reliable supply sources.
In the ensuing 10 years, he completed jobs for well-known restaurants, among them Bacino’s, Charlie Trotter’s and Cafe 36, as well as showrooms and other businesses. But his primary work then and today is residential bathroom renovation, and it is here that he has developed a cadre of boosters who praise his seasoned know-how and craftsmanship.
One of them is Dr. Margit Kir-Stimon, a Lincoln Park-based psychologist.
A chance meeting between Laing and the psychologist outside an Evanston Dunkin’ Donuts shop led to a remodeling contract for him, a major upgrade of a bathroom and half-bath in a vintage Evanston co-op apartment for her, and the beginning of a long-term friendship.
“It was very serendipitous,” says Kir-Stimon. “I was out for a Sunday stroll and stopped for a cup of coffee, all the while wondering how on earth I was going to fix the leak behind the green steel tile in my bathroom.
“I had talked to someone in a tile store about it and was told what I really needed was a construction expert. I called several places, but no one was interested. Evidently, the job was too small. I was totally frustrated.”
When Kir-Stimon exited the doughnut shop, she noticed a red pick-up truck with the license plate “BATHMAN.”
“Can you believe it?” she asks. “After my time-consuming search for help and all the blind alleys, here was Scott, the `BATHMAN’ contractor, parked at the curb right before my eyes!”
As it turned out, the work in Kir-Stimon’s apartment went far beyond repair of the hidden leak. With the exception of the tub, which was reglazed and fitted with a hand-held shower, the bathroom was gutted. The 1920s-style tile was discarded, the toilet was replaced with a high-tech model from Japan, the outdated lavatory made way for a large pedestal sink imported from Italy.
In the half-bath, Laing and his crew borrowed space from an adjacent guest-room closet to accommodate a shower stall with custom-made door, repositioned the toilet to allow easier access to the room, installed new tile, a pedestal lavatory, a recessed medicine cabinet with mirrored door, and new lighting fixtures and hardware.
“Scott is a class act,” says Kir-Stimon. “He was fun to work with, always responsive, and he guided me through the selection process with an artistic eye. I love the new look and so do my friends and neighbors. Everyone in my building has been in to admire the changes.”
Kathy Schrepfer, a Chicago attorney, is equally pleased with Laing’s renovation of the smaller of two second-floor bathrooms in her Elmhurst home.
“When we moved in two years ago I was under the naive impression it would be a simple matter to redo the bathroom for $5,000,” Schrepfer says.
She also wanted to update her 1940s dwelling, and to that end took the 1999 Oak Park/River Forest Kitchen Walk, where she met kitchen/bathroom designer Cheryl Daugvila, owner of La Grange-based Cheryl D. & Co.
“Cheryl is very creative, but also immensely practical; she sketched some ideas and introduced me to Scott, the bathroom-installation expert, who is also creative and quite familiar with product. I guess you could call it a joint effort.
“Scott had some really good ideas, too, and a sense of what I wanted to accomplish,” Schrepfer says. “He is definitely customer-service oriented; I never had to chase him down.”
Basically white, with cobalt blue and turquoise accents, the sleek, contemporary bathroom features a tub by Kohler, a toilet by Japanese manufacturer Toto, a lavatory imported from Italy, an undersink cabinet supplied by Cheryl D. & Co., and a make-up table.
“You always hope to get what you pay for, and I certainly did. The room looks just great,” says Schrepfer, who is about to embark on her kitchen remodeling project with the aid of Daugvila.
Still another fan is Doug Christiansen, owner of a national executive recruiting firm headquartered in Westchester. He planned to renew the rooms of his post-World War II ranch house in La Grange and met Laing through an interior designer familiar with the latter’s work. One of the first to promote casual dress in his 80-member office, Christiansen believes physical comfort promotes better work performance. “I wanted my home to reflect that same feeling of warmth and camaraderie, and Scott understood exactly what I hoped to achieve,” he says. “We collaborated on ideas, and he was responsible for much of the remodeling.”
The result is a bright, white bathroom with wainscotted walls and an unclutterd clean, country-like appearance.
With 10 years of business experience behind him, Scott Laing had tested the waters carefully before taking the plunge and buying a commercial condo in downtown La Grange to house his showroom, opened in March.
The 1,100-square-foot space features six alcoves, each trimmed with jewel-like imported lavatories in luscious colors and unique shapes, each featuring unusual mirrors. The showroom also displays artistically arranged tile samples and a wide variety of bathroom accessories, and contains a library of catalogs that invite browsing. “It’s a relatively small place, but it’s fine for me and my customers because I’ve spent years sifting and winnowing things in order to help them choose quality items that work well,” says Laing.
For more information, contact Bath Resource and Design, 22 Calendar Ct., La Grange; 708-354-4770.
