Bath Planet welcomes Bruce Thompson

Bruce Thompson has been involved in the plumbing industry for 35 years. Although he grew up in California, he has lived in southern Utah for the past 20 years. In 1996, during his transition between the two states, he established a plumbing company called Bruce Thompson Plumbing LLC, with bathroom remodeling being a staple of the services he provides. He runs the business with his two sons and his wife; Elizabeth, Jared and Josh. Elizabeth has a background in finances and takes care of the company book keeping.

How did you learn about the brand?

I was approached by Bath Planet corporate and it ended up being a great fit because we do a high volume of bath remodels already. We really see Bath Planet as a way to give back to the community and help people who need a quick and easy solution or remodel.

What makes your business different?

Seeing that the times were changing, it was apparent to me that Bath Planet is a necessary service in the area. We can provide a fast turnaround at a good price with the highest quality product available.

What challenges have you overcome to get where you are now?

I think especially in the construction industry, just starting out as a contractor and building up a business can be difficult. You have to develop your skill and look for opportunities to make that transition from being a one truck operation to running a large business. It’s a tough transition.

What are your expansion or development plans?

Currently we have the rights for southern Utah and we have ideas to expand through the entire state. Right now we are focused on establishing a presence in the area with Bath Planet so that we can continue to grow.

Do you have any other interesting hobbies or passions?

I like nostalgic things and have a passion for vintage cars. Through my ventures of older collectables, I’ve come across a bathtub from the early 1900’s - it’s a folding bathtub and it’s a cool piece of our showroom!

Bath Planet Welcomes Donnie and Lucy Grubbs

Donnie Grubbs started in the construction business when he was 18. By the age of 22 he had started his own subcontracting business. While going door to door selling magazines with his brother, he ended up selling his first aluminum siding at the age of 25 in 1976 through a dealership called All Side and later started Home Craftsman. In 1990 Donnie opened a window manufacturing company and sold it after a year to become a salesman for Sears which he did for two years. In 1999, he started Donnie Grubbs Vinyl Siding that he currently runs today. His daughter, Lucy Grubbs, began working for her father in 2003 at Donnie Grubbs Vinyl Siding and then they took on the bathroom division in 2009.

How did you learn about the brand?

We had used BCI products before we became Bath Planet dealers, so we knew the quality of the product. We were working with Luxury Bath and decided to go back to BCI once we found out about Bath Planet.

Why did you choose an opportunity with Bath Planet?

Bath Planet offers us more support than any other dealer program. What really separates Bath Planet though are the people and how upfront and honest they are with everything. We’ve been in this industry a long time and understand the importance of treating people with respect.

What makes your business unique in the community?

One thing is that we are very involved in the community and do a lot of marketing. Our showroom is extensive and really adds a tangible aspect to our products. I love people and talking with members of West Monroe.

What challenges have you overcome to get where you are now?

Just finding the best people, we have a high standard for our workers because of how involved we are in this community.

What are your expansion or development plans? What is your end goal with Bath Planet?

We are working right now to get our new showroom up and running. We’d also like to open other showrooms in Alexandria or Natchitoches, Louisiana; we do work in those areas very much so we’d like to have a greater Bath Planet presence there as well.

Do you have any other interesting hobbies or passions?

Donnie: I love my business and find a lot of enjoyment in helping the community.

Lucy: I have two children, ages seven and three, and love to spend time with family.

Bath Planet featured in the Times of Northwest Indiana

Bath Planet dealer Dave Redmon was featured in a great article in the Times of Northwest on November 24.

The article discusses Dave Redmon becoming the new Bath Planet dealer in Northwest Indiana with his mother and brother. Further discussed in the article are the decisions behind Redmon’s choice to become a Bath Planet dealer and his personal ties to the Valparaiso community, once playing basketball for the University of Valparaiso. Read a preview of the article is below, or click here. for the full story.

SMALL-BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT: Bath Planet, Valparaiso

Valparaiso University basketball fans likely will recognize his name.

As one of the all-time scoring leaders in the school’s basketball history, Dave Redmon is now looking to become a star in another arena – the business world.

Redmon recently became a dealer for Bath Planet, a Palatine-based bathroom remodeling company that is backed by BCI, a manufacturer of tub and shower-liner systems. Redmon works closely with his mother and brother to service Northwest Indiana, providing clients with bathroom solutions that meet their budgets. (READ MORE)

Bath Planet Featured in The Grand Rapids Business Journal

Bath Planet was recently featured in a great article in The Grand Rapids Business Journal. The article details how Greg Olson became a Bath Planet dealer, as an addition to his construction business in Grand Rapids. Rick Hirschhaut, Senior VP of Bath Planet, expands on the brand and how it links BCI products and system closer to high quality dealers/installers. You can read a clip of the article below or click here for the full text.

Bath Planet names Kodiak Construction new dealer

Kodiak Construction was launched in Grand Rapids 11 years ago by Greg Olson, just two months after the 9/11 attacks brought the U.S. economy to a virtual standstill for months.

Kodiak survived that, and then managed to survive the Recession, which decimated the home construction industry throughout the U.S., and in West Michigan in particular. But Kodiak’s forte has always been in home remodeling, which apparently didn’t suffer as much as new home construction did. (READ MORE)

Bath Planet Welcomes Our Newest Dealer, Greg Olson!

Greg Olson is originally from Northern Michigan, attending college at Northern Michigan University in Marquette and obtaining a degree in science. In 1988, Greg went into the remodeling business, working with National Home Remodeling until he became a district manager. He stayed with the company for 10 years before moving east to do consulting for a remodeling company in Harrisburg, PA. Next, Greg worked in Chicago for a computer company before moving to Toledo, OH as a corporate sales manager for a different remodeling company. He performed more consulting in the home remodeling business industry on the West Coast before starting Kodiak Construction LLC in 2001.

How did you learn about the brand?

I had been a BCI dealer for 8 years and BCI corporate asked us if we wanted to be the official dealer for our territory. Since two of our major product lines are windows and BCI products, we decided becoming the official dealer was a great fit for our business.

What was appealing to you about joining a dealer system?

The systems BCI corporate provides us are great – the website for Bath Planet is very user-friendly. The quality and strict guidelines for dealers, as well as the rigorous structure we need to follow as dealers, fits with the high quality of service we like to provide our customers.

What makes your business different?

We are extremely high on quality and we have a high number of retained business with our clients. I personally go on job sites and am heavily invested in my business. We have an A-plus rating with the Better Business Bureau, in addition to a great team and staff.

How do you connect with the local community through your business?

We do things with a number of charities. We have recently worked with The Lions Club and are working to help the blind.

What challenges have you overcome to get where you are now?

Just adjusting and adapting to the economy.

What are your expansion or development plans?

Our goal with Bath Planet is to continue to develop the area between Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo.

Do you have any other interesting hobbies or passions?

I love to fish whenever I get the chance and I’m a die-hard Packers fan! I like the outdoors and spending time with my family.

Bath Planet welcomes Ron Carrier

Ron Carrier has served as president of his family-owned windows business since 1987. Due to problems caused by the economy, Ron recently began expanding his product and service offerings to reach a wider range of customers. After hearing about the great opportunities bathroom remodeling offered from other dealers within the home improvement industry, he began looking for a way to add it to his services. Ron plans to formally open his Bath Planet location January 1, 2013.

How did you learn about the brand?

In the economic downturn, generating leads is a difficult task. We diversified our product line lately to include roofing, window film and garage doors, but we were still looking for a hot home improvement item. Bathroom remodeling in particular was something we knew was hot by talking to dealers across the US. Bath Planet gave us the opportunity to add that to our services.

What was appealing to you about joining Bath Planet?

We feel the Bath Planet name is going to be exclusive –in addition to Good Housekeeping seal which is also exclusive to Bath Planet. I also like the idea of installations being done in one day, which matches the specialty-type products that we always look for.

                                                                                                                                                

Our average sale wasn’t too high at the moment because of financing difficulties, so Bath Planet fits right in with our business.

How do you connect with the local community through your business?

We give money to a charity called Giving Hearts with every appointment that we set. We also do things with the local schools’ football and basketball teams.

                                                                                                                                                          

What are your expansion or development plans?

Right now we’re involved with 9 counties. I’d love to see this take off to where we could gather more territory and more counties.

Bath Planet featured in the Hot Springs Village Voice

The article discusses the introduction of Bath Planet into the Hot Springs Village. Highlighted in the article are the extensive safety features Bath Planet can offer to improve one’s bathroom as well as the cost and time effectiveness of going with Bath Planet.

Bath Planet offers free recommendations for safer bathrooms
Featured in Hot Springs Village Voice


Hot Springs Village property owners Darin and Cindy Wiggs own Bath Planet, which offers a one-day bath remodel service.

“Instead of tying up your bathroom for two weeks and costing thousands of dollars, we can usually be finished in one day,” he said.

Darin Wiggs says his staff is not a hard-core sales group. Bath Planet can make a free in-home visit and make recommendations.

Modifications can help make homes safe for aging people, he said.

“ The most- dangerous place in the house is the bathroom,” he said. Adding grab bars and a walk-in bathtub are among changes that can help allow seniors to live at home rather than moving, he said.


Read the entire article here.