Three generations doing work at McLain's Cabinets

Less than a year after purchasing McLain's Cabinets and Countertops from his father, Steve McLain, Eric McLain is keeping the family business going beside his brother and father - with his 9-year-old son starting to help, as well.

Steve McLain said selling to his son seems to be working out well.

"It just seemed to be the right thing to do," Steve McLain said. "He's been doing a good job since we've started this thing. ... There is not a lot of people out there who want to buy places like this anymore."

McLain said that he started McLain's Cabinets in 2014, buying a cabinet shop at the east edge of town from the former owner, who operated the shop under a different name. He added that his construction company, SM Construction, was already making and installing cabinets.

"We thought, 'Why not?'" he said.

He added that he sold his business to his son because he would eventually like to retire in the future.

Eric McLain said that he has been working side-by-side with his father doing construction his whole life, starting when he was 12, sweeping and cleaning.

"It was a job. You went there and got paid and tried to learn something," he said.

In 2007 he graduated from Montana State University in Bozeman with a degree in industrial technology then went back to work with his father at SM Construction. He said the goal when he was in school was to graduate so he could step into the family carpentry business.

Steve McLain said that after his son got his degree, he asked him what he wanted to do, and his son replied that he wanted to move back to Havre and work with him.

"I didn't even invite him yet," he said, jokingly.

Eric McLain said that they started doing cabinets in 2010 and when they were offered the shop they thought it was a good idea because they could increase the size of their shop and have a showroom to display what they have to offer.

McLain added that his younger brother, Cody, also works with them.

"It's all right," he said. "We have our own moments, but it's not too bad really."

Steve McLain said that, as a father, seeing both of his sons work together in the business in a great feeling.

"It's awesome. It's been really good," he said.

For the most part, he and his sons work well together, McLain said. He added that his family has a good work ethic.

"They are both good craftsmen and they're nice to people," he said.

Eric McLain said that he sees many advantages working with his family, they are reliable and he can always count on them.

"It is kind of hard at times because you work with them everyday, but that's just part of how you do it," he said. "... They are good help at the end of the day."

Business is good

Eric McLain said that since he has bought the business, business has been good, but he has to stay a little more organized than he was expecting.

He said that they don't build many of the cabinets themselves, mostly getting them from manufacturers, putting it together and installing them, but they do build, fabricate and install countertops.

McLain's serves more than just the Havre area, with the company's reach spanning from the Malta to Big Sandy areas, he said.

He added that the difference for him between construction and cabinetry is that the results at the end of the day are a little more flashy. With construction work, the work may be hidden by drywall but with cabinetry, after finishing a kitchen or something similar, people can see a finished product ready for use.

"It's pretty satisfying," he said.

McLain said that when his father first bought McLain's Cabinets, SM Construction was still working on a number of projects, with five employees and basing operations at the shop. Now, it is only his brother, father and him working at the business.

McLain's has done a number of jobs for people around town, residential and commercial properties, he said, including installing and building Corian® countertops, which they are certified in installing. Corian® is a solid acrylic surface which is commonly used in hospitals as well as homes due to its easy to clean and durable surface.

He said that he usually does the majority of the design work, using a program called 20/20, which is a design program the majority of the cabinet companies install their products on. Using the program, he said, he can design a kitchen in three-dimensional rendering and have all the prices estimated through the use of the program.

McLain added that he, his father and brother are all able to do everything else needed in the shop.

Some people come with interesting ideas of what they want them to design, he said, and he and his family has to figure out how to make their vision into a reality for them. McLain added that they never try pushing any specific products onto their customers.

"It's been alright," he added.

Old and new

Steve McLain said that he has been a Havre business owner since 1980, a year after he graduated from vocational technical school. He added that his father was a railroader, and encouraged him to work for the railroad as well, but after working at the railroad for two months he and a friend decided to go back to school.

"I took a chance on a lot of things that nobody else did," he said.

After starting SM Construction in 1994, his company built a number of properties such as the Rolling Hills properties, he added.

McLain said that he still owns SM Construction and occasionally they will take on new projects around town, but they are able to be more selective on the jobs they work on. He added that he is surprised by how busy the cabinet business always is.

"Eric and Cody, they love the cabinet business," he said. "... All the way to building condos and houses to working in the cabinet business, I enjoy all of it."

McLain said that between his four children, his two sons and his two daughters, Haley and Amy, he has 16 grandchildren. He added hopefully some of them want to get involved in the family business.

Steve McLain said his son Eric has two boys, Brayden, 9, and Callen, 4, and Cody has one boy, Brooks, 3, and one more child on the way.

Brayden sweeps the shop just like his dad did when he was younger, Steve McLain said. He added that it is great to have his grandson willing to work because a number of people aren't willing to do manual labor.

"Someday he'll be able to charge the same as a lawyer because nobody does this job," he said.

Eric McLain said that he doesn't know if his son will be interested in taking over the family business one day - only the future can tell.

"I don't know, we'll see," he said.