Plank Expression

Sacramento-based manufacturer Stikwood is taking the interior design world by storm.

By Catherine Warmerdam
Photo Courtesy of 1 Chic Retreat

Inspiration can strike at the most unexpected moments, and so it was for Jerry McCall. A master woodworker and self-described “serial entrepreneur,” McCall was on a road trip from Sacramento to Vancouver, B.C., with his wife, Laura, in 2012 when he was musing about a new wood product that could “make the most of trees.”

As McCall puts it, “I’m always bouncing ideas off of Laura. So here we were, traveling up the coast on Highway 1, and I’m thinking out loud about optimization.” Then it hit him: “I knew people were liking reclaimed wood on walls. What if I could somehow cut the wood very thin and use the wall to make it rigid? We could put adhesive backing on it to make it easy to install.”

At first, his wife figured this was another of McCall’s wild ideas. “I didn’t think too much about it until I walked into the office two months later and he had created a mock-up and stuck it up on the wall,” she says. “I was blown away. It was gorgeous.”

And so Stikwood was born. The Sacramento-based company today manufactures more than two dozen styles of peel-and-stick planks for use in commercial and residential settings. Except for the bamboo, the wood is sourced entirely from North America. “There’s lots of imitation wood materials. But early on, we made a decision: If it’s authentic, innovative and cool, then we’re interested in it,” says McCall. “I personally love the worn surface that time and nature have created.”

Although architects and interior designers were some of the first people to use the product, DIYers have also fallen hard for Stikwood. “I think this product speaks to all levels of designers,” McCall says. “I get a lot of joy out of woodworking, and I think it’s really cool that consumers get a little of that feeling, too.”

Plank Expression featured Sacramento company Stikwood. Photo by 1 Chic Retreat.