Giving a facelift to an older kitchen is what it’s all about at Kitchens and Stuff in Winter Haven. For nine years, owner Mike Steen, a firefighter, and his crew have been building cabinets to beautify kitchen remodels in the area.

“I got into the business by working here when off duty,” said Steen. “I had tried several businesses. A guy in the fire department had this business and I got trained in this through him. It’s a new concept in kitchens and cabinets. You dress them up and then stock them with stuff.” The cabinets are made of a variety of convenient shelving, dividers, drawers, and almost anything imaginable that will create a beautiful remodeled kitchen and incorporate conveniences that make entertaining and family food preparation easier and fun.

The “stuff” includes kitchen gadgets, handy items for cooking, placemats and coasters, aprons, towels, and soaps. Almost any handy cooking knife, opener, or tool is available along with many neat and clever utensils. Cyndi Stachura does most of the ordering for the stuff department and creates gift baskets filled with kitchen items for wedding showers, a housewarming, or any holiday.

“The concept came from building the cabinets and then stocking them with the things people want in the kitchen.” said Steen. “It’s based on the whole cooking experience. It’s all about bringing the family back around to the kitchen. We want to get people to open their kitchen spaces up and make them inviting. Years ago it was an important bonding experience for the family in the kitchen. We try to take it a step further and make it part of the kitchen experience.” According to Steen the business mainly focuses on remodeling kitchens. The crew has done new construction, but the firm prefers remodels. The company uses only laminates, a lot of colors and door styles. The laminates look like wood, but not as expensive as wood. The cost of wood is double the cost of a laminate. “We give the customer a better price to use laminates. It is attractive and saves them money,” said Steen.

If a customer’s kitchen cabinets are in good shape, Steen’s firm can save the customer money by resurfacing the cabinets. The project of refacing cabinets and adding a tile splashguard to the wall takes about a week to finish. They offer granite countertops but usually sell an engineered manmade stone version that has all the features of granite without the work of having to annually seal the material. “The average kitchen cost is $8,000 with everything new,” said Steen. “That includes the cabinet refacing, tile backsplash and countertops.” Each customer gets top priority since they only work on one or two major kitchen jobs at a time. They have three fulltime installers and one fulltime office person.

Steen says a goal of the business is to have cooking classes featuring guest chefs. Introductory, intermediate, and special food classes are planned for adults. Cooking classes are also planned for children. “This is all work in progress,” said Steen. “The point is for people to come in, enjoy, and learn cooking and for us to show off what cabinets, designs, cooking appliances and handy conveniences we offer. It is a good investment to gain a cabinet customer and keep them as a cooking class customer.” Future plans include opening more stores and selling everything to do with cooking and the kitchen. They will be expanding the business to include a full line of bakeware, cookware, and utensils. “If it is found in the kitchen, we want to have it,” said Steen. “We want to sell the hard to find items and have the place where people can find everything.”

Kitchens and Stuff is located at 408 S.E. Cypress Gardens Blvd. in Winter Haven. Because customers’ working hours vary, after hour appointments can easily be made by calling 863-293-4107.