”…low level of … orders … in this difficult economy
makes it unfeasible to maintain
such a small volume of production,” Viking says
St. Charles kitchen cabinets promoted for the launch of the new Viking brand, December 2007
Viking Range Corporation confirms that, in the first quarter of this year, it discontinued the manufacturing and sales of its St. Charles steel kitchen cabinet brand. The “original” St. Charles brand — launched in 1935 — was the creme-de-la-creme of vintage cabinets. The brand was purchased by Viking in 2001; they discontinued sales of the legacy design in 2004, and they launched their newly engineered designs for sale in 2008. I reached out to Viking, and they provided this statement, which they said was made to dealers in Q1:
As the economy continues to struggle, it is important that companies commit their resources where they have the most long term impact. With that in mind and after much contemplation and review, Viking Range Corporation has decided to discontinue manufacturing St Charles cabinetry.
Viking has a strong emotional attachment to the St Charles brand and has supported it for six years; however, the low level of St. Charles orders we are receiving in this difficult economy makes it unfeasible to maintain such a small volume of production.
Viking remains committed to supporting the network of St Charles dealers and their current customers as we work through this shutdown transition together.
- Viking Range Corporation
Two readers first alerted me on Feb. 15 that St. Charles cabinet dealers told them that they could no longer buy the cabinets. Comments came in this story about the lovely array of colors that Viking offers for its refrigerators, stoves and other appliances. One of the commenters, Dave, said:
I recently tried to buy cabinets and all sales have been put on hold while Viking tries to find a buyer for the brand. You can’t buy new St. Charles right now for any amount of money. Sad really, we are back to the drawing board for our 1951 re-do…
A spokesperson for Viking would not officially comment on whether the St. Charles brand was for sale. The St. Charles website has been deactivated, and we’ve recently spotted three dealers selling their showroom displays on craigslist or Facebook.
St. Charles was a longtime, iconic steel kitchen cabinet brand, and derived its name because the company was based in St. Charles, Ill. You can read more about the company’s history on our vintage steel kitchen cabinet Forum, where we help buyers and sellers connect and where we’ve identified more than 70 different vintage brands.
During all this time, as far as I know, St. Charles was considered “top of the line” — the gauge of the steel was very, very heavy. According to my research, it was the very last of the iconic brands to endure in the marketplace. The 21st century Viking/St. Charles cabinets were the only premium steel kitchen cabinet widely available in the U.S. market, as far as I know. Above: A mid-1980s advertisement from my personal collection. More info on the history of steel kitchen in midcentury America here.
I will let you know if / when there is more information on the status and potential future availability of new manufacture St. Charles kitchen cabinets. Viking told me in an email, “Should there be any updates regarding the St. Charles brand, we will certainly communicate that to you in a very timely manner.”
Other stories about the new-generation St. Charles kitchen cabinets that I have featured on the blog:
- I reported that Viking had purchased and would relaunch the St. Charles brand in spring 2008.
- A few years later, I followed up with a story on the use of the St. Charles kitchen cabinets in the Frank Sinatra house, Twin Palms”, in Palm Springs.
Moving to opinion — mine:
I would love to see the St. Charles brand endure and succeed. I have not seen a lot of vintage St. Charles kitchen cabinets in person — but the few I have seen were gorgeous, and definitely superior compared to any other vintage brands I’ve seen. HEAVY DUTY.
I never saw one the “revival” St. Charles kitchens in person, although they sure looked nice online. They certainly seem to have been marketed to the high-end consumer. When, a few years ago I asked Viking for pricing, they could not give it to me — prices were not even published.
Now that the brand is being sunsetted by Viking, we’re starting to get some clearer indications of how expensive they were, as dealers list their display models for sale. Currently, this set of seven kitchen dealer showroom cabinets is for sale for $8,950. Moreover, the dealer says the MSRP retail price was $23,000. That’s more than $3,000 per cabinet. Another showroom display, spotted by participants on our Forum, indicated a similar, hefty retail price: $48,300 for 14 cabinets, which averages $3,400 per cabinet. Again – these are full-retail prices; the price as sold by dealers may have been discounted. For example, I recall that on the Forum, we had another commenter say she’d been quoted around $800 for a 36″ base cabinet. Here’s a third display for sale; if you are in the market, these would surely be lovely to own.
Even so, I’m not saying this pricing was crazy or anything: I bet for sure, that for Viking, manufacturing steel kitchen cabinets and also maintaining a dealer infrastructure was very costly. Buyers would have been very high end — this market would have demanded custom sizes, features and service to the nth degree. I really think that selling kitchen cabinets and selling stoves must be vastly different: The stoves and appliances are almost like commodities at this point; the kitchens, on the other hand, are “high touch” custom. Very labor intensive to deal with. And we are talking: Powder coated steel. I am sure that must cost much more than wood, MDF and particle board — key components in wood kitchen cabinets.
Not to mention, and as Viking pointed out in their statement, there is the economy: The Great Recession hit just as Viking was launching the St. Charles brand — that could not have helped either, *understatement*.
What to do if you want steel kitchen cabinets for your retro inspired kitchen?
Buy vintage. Some tips:
- See all my stories about steel kitchen cabinets here.
- How and where to buy (or sell) vintage metal kitchen cabinets.
- Analysis of pricing for vintage steel cabinets bought in 2010.
- How to make vintage metal kitchen cabinets fit into your kitchen.
- A short history of steel kitchen cabinets.
- The Retro Renovation steel kitchen cabinet buy/sell Forum.
All material as published here is copyright RetroRenovation.com 2012
No material in this story may be published in any format without written permission.
This is obviously sad, but I understand the realities of the market and how it makes no business sense for them to keep the line. Hope someone can buy the line and perhaps revitatlize the brand, but it would take a huge leap of faith, risk, and vision.
This is such a shame. I do, however, find it odd that I hadn’t seen any advertisements for the line of cabinetry. Usually, in the Architectural magazines that I get, I see all sorts of high-end cabinetry advertised. I have never seen a St. Charles by Viking ad. I wonder if a part of their problem was a lack of advertisement. You can’t sell it if people don’t know that it exists!
I agree, they didn’t seem to do much to market the brand, especially in relation to the Viking name, which seems to be the holy grail of high end appliances. I’m sure the recession hurt, but let’s face it; there are still plenty of folks out there with lots of money. Maybe they were too stylish and tasteful for the McMansion crowd.
I was completely unaware that new steel kitchen cabinets were recently available at any price. I am also not surprised at the pricing, comparisons can be made to other examples of high quality, powder coated steel cabinetry; specifically tool chest/cabinets from MAC, SnapOn and Lista, very similar pricing. As much sense as steel cabinets make I’m sure they were a hard sell to the typical high-end shopper who would be more likely to dump their piles of money on a vendor like Bulthaup or similar. So sad to hear of an old name (and domestic?) manufacturer dying off.
Pity. What a beautiful kitchen!
Well I’m beside myself. I’m a fan of repro – whether clothing or home goods. It seems to be an unpopular standpoint within the vintage community (as if my choices are not “authentic” enough to be worthy – ha!). But if I can get the same look in pristine condition, why not pay a bit more for something that will last a lifetime?
I’m still renting, so I guess my all-new buttercup-yellow kitchen will have to remain a dream…
I have some of the new St. Charles cabinets in my kitchen, and I’m currently waiting for some more to come in late May. They are beautiful and well made, and I’m very sad to see them go out of business. We compared prices and they were not outrageous, as most people think. We’re doing a small kitchen, L-shaped + a corner unit for under $20,000. We had a problem with our distributor who ordered the wrong color, so we’ve reordered the correct color and are going to sell the ones we have now. (I’ve listed them in the forum if anyone is interested.) It’s a VERY long story, but the bottom line is, we toured the factory in Mississippi and were impressed enough to place an order. When the project is complete, I’ll share some photos.
My hometown, Bangor Maine has many kitchens with St. Charles kitchens. Post WWII, there was a dealer here who made a small fortune who sold St Charles for the building boom of the time and in many remodels. The owners of these homes still have the original cabinets. I rejuvenated a couple fo the kitchens when the owners originally wanted a “new” kitchen. The cabinets were removed, media blasted and refinished, just like new! One home had wood doors and the owner wanted some umph so we took the doors off, had an inlay of black walnut like a border installed into the plain solid birch doors. Very handsome kitchen. Kitchen cabinets have a large mark-up. I used to design/sell using Quaker Maid. The cost multiplier was about $0.28 per dollar of retail. So for every $1,000 in cost the price for us was $280. We rarely sold at full retail. Our less expensive line the cost multipier was as low as $0.17 per dollar.
many reasons for the end-of-the-line:
1. A high end buyer will splurge on the Viking appliances but when it comes to the steel cabinetry; American won’t do because it won’t impress the neighbors; it has to be German or Italian design.
2. Also, probably a case where something that was so reasonable in price back in the day is now too pricey for the average Joe.
3. Most people who look at older homes when buying usually decrie anything old as “dated” and has to be gutted; not vintage the way folks do on this site, so they certainly aren’t looking to replicate anything old with new if it’s going to have an “old” look.
Love that first photo, so streamlined, so neat and modern. It’s a shame that Viking has discontinued the cabinetry, but it seems to be a way of our times. If the price is any indication, most people (including my husband and I) couldn’t afford the cabinets even if they wanted to. Not all of us can afford what is considered ‘top of the line’, no matter how much we’d like to (without going into extreme debt).
I hope the company continues to look for someone to continue producing the line and to do it justice.
I’ll admit that though I’ve heard of the cabinetry, I’ve never seen it before. It is very striking, and as I said above, very streamlined and modern. Great for a ranch or many other modern style homes.
Looks like the first link expired, but is reposted with a lower price! Now $7250…. here’s the new link:
http://chicago.craigslist.org/nwc/hsh/2948026781.html
Do labs and hospitals still install metal cabinets? If so, where do they get them?
Yes, I’ve seen these companies in my online travels. They cabinets often have locks and an… institutional look. As I recall. There also appear to be some very ‘low end’ metal cabinets available for … apartments maybe? Again, as far as I know, Viking/St. Charles the only retail-for-consumer steel kitchen cabinets that I was aware of.
Dura Lab Corporation sells to the scientific and hospital type clients. They’re not interested in dealing with home owners with small needs.
I am fortunate to have original St Charles cabinets in my kitchen, butler’s pantry and breakfast room. They are in good condition for their age and include specialty cabinets like flour bin, flour sifter, bread drawer, mixer cabinet, lazy susans, slide-out shelves for pots/pans, locking silver cabinet and linen drawers. I even have original correspondence between the owner, architect and builder regarding the choice of cabinetry for the house. The owner spent over $1.1 million (in today’s dollars) for his dream home in 1957. I had fantasies of replacing the cabinets with the new Viking line, keeping the same Buttercup yellow, if I ever updated the kitchen. Oh well! Sad to see the line discontinued.
WOW! Your kitchen — and house — sound amazing!
We have an original St. Charles kitchen too, in a custom mid-century modern house built in 1951. There are many specialized and interesting drawer fittings as well.
My partner and I have been disagreeing though, about what to do with the kitchen. It definitely needs an upgrade in terms of space, functionality, and appliances (still have the original double wall ovens!). Our compromise solution was going to be to renovate using contemporary St. Charles cabinets and reconfiguring the adjacent family room as a new kitchen, while turning the old galley into a butler’s kitchen, or possibly a laundry room keeping most of the original cabinets as they are.
Totally bummed that this will no longer be an option. I hope some company picks up the brand. Wolf/Sub-zero? Better appliance manufacturer anyway… please take up the challenge!
That first kitchen is just wonderful, dare to dream.
When we bought our midcentury house last year, the kitchen had three St. Charles buttercup yellow cabinets in very good shape, the rest were generic wooden ones. I sold them through your forum–thanks!!I think they went for about $45 each + shipping.
I have a galley kitchen and want St. Charles cabinets…white w/glass tops…..i know they have discontinued mfgr’g them….is there any other company that u could possibly recommend?…….i’ve had wood and want to go back to steel/metal……any assistance u can provide would be greatly appreciated….Thanks muchly!
In my never-ending search for a company still producing metal kitchen cabinets, I contacted Linda Bergling, Owner of Stainless Steel Kitchens (a woman-owned company, btw). After my inquiry, she told me she has actually been thinking about it for some time and is considering starting up a “retro” type line of metal kitchen cabinets. She is trying to gauge actual interest to see if it’s financially viable and would like to hear from anyone & everyone! Please send her email at stainlesssteelkitchens@hotmail.com – include “retro cabinets” in the subject line so she’ll know it’s not just a random inquiry.
This brand of kitchen cabinets is so classy that Frank Lloyd Wright installed them in Fallingwater — the famous house that he designed in rural Pennsylvania, which is now a museum. They’re fabulous!
We salvaged almost all the St Charles vintage cabinetry for our kitchen (had it shipped to Seattle from Indiana). We needed just one area to be custom and new: cabinets above the fridge with an adjoining tall skinny pantry pullout alongside the fridge. We had it priced for new St Charles and it was over $3k (actually sounds pretty good in comparison to some of the prices quoted above), so ended up getting Ikea cabinets for about $700 instead. We just couldn’t swing the expense, and once we put the same hardware on them, nobody notices that the Ikea units aren’t metal units. I’m really sad to see this line discontinued, and sorry that we couldn’t support them while they were still around. St Charles are indeed incredible; we love all the features of the ones we salvaged.
I found a St. Charles kitchen for sale on Craig’s LIst. Does anyone know about this line? From what I read, this isn’t an “vintage” cabinet, but the newer line.
Leah, use the Search box — I have many many stories about this line. Also see our forum, http://retrorenovation.com/forums, which is all about vintage steel kitchen cabinets.
Hi Pam, I pulled a set of old St. Charles cabinets out of the basement of a NY City building. After a wall in my kitchen collapsed, I was forced to renovate but I didn’t have the resources to go whole hog. I took the cabinets upstate, stripped them of exterior layers of paint and took them to an autobody shop and had them painted a graphite gray. The interiors are getting a bright red paint, which I’m doing. The knobs on these cabinets alone weigh a half a pound. And this kitchen costs about an eighth of what it would have cost if I’d gone the “everything new” route. I was fortunate to have friends looking out for me and a contractor who can figure anything out and doesn’t want to skin me alive. Kate McLeod
Sounds great, Kate! Send me a pic when you are ready for prime time!
My wife and I just purchased a late 1940′s era home with some St Charles cabinets in the kitchen. These however are skinned in white laminate but they still have the St Charles Labels on some of the doors and the Hinges all say St Charles on them. I don’t know if they are original to the home but I can’t find any history on any laminate kitchens made by St Charles. Does any one know where i might find some info on the possible dates of these cabinets and some tips on relaminating some of the door edges and faces?
Does anyone know where to find replacement hardware for vintage St. Charles cabinets? I’m looking for door catches, bumpers and drawer glides.
we have an FAQ on this – answer is No. you have to jimmy or scavenge
Contact Dave Voss, at Voss Spray Painting in St. Louis MO. He has been painting St. Charles cabinets for decades and says he has some parts. 314-771-7711
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Why is it the beautiful things always have to die?
I’ve been fantasizing about a new St. Charles kitchen for years, and I’m about to buy a new house and had budgeted for it. Now I’ll never have my great-grandmother’s kitchen.
Dag.
Search out vintage – it can be done!
We purchased a home with St Charles cabinets in the VERY large kitchen, The bad part is the home is in Oregon and there is ALOT of humidity and some of the cabinets have rusted. Do you have any suggestions. I am very frustrated.
My wife and I bought a house in Tennessee that was built before 1900. It was remodeled in the 60′s with St. Charles cabinets. The kitchen is huge with a large assortment of St. Charles cabinets that are cream in color. We’re interested in selling the whole lot, I would say all but one are in excellent condition. There has been only one owner who had originally installed them. I can send pictures of the cabinets. Don.kelly2@live.com
Donald, you can list these on our buy/sell forum: http://retrorenovation.com/forums/
Silly me. I thought this was e.a.s.y.
I just wanted to know the name of the material used in my white pull out bin under the sink.
I’ve got to mask some permanent stains with tape, but I need the tape to adhere to this material.
So what kind of tape shall I buy?
I don’t know… all these cabinets makers were different…
Isn’t St. Charles St-Charles?
Just a heads up that St. Charles has been brought back to life by the NY reps, St. Charles of NY. It looks like they’ll be up and running in a month or so.
Tom, this sounds like great news, where did you hear this? I just went to their website and didn’t see any press release. Very curious!
I grew up in a house with wonderful St. Charles kitchen cabinets and everything else I have lived with since then has seemed flimsy, not to say shoddy. This is a real shame. I hope someone buys and relaunches this product. You don’t know what you’ve got ’til it’s gone.