Absolute Concrete

Hiring Kollin Baker for a countertop was a huge mistake. He (admittedly) underbid to get me to hire him and later tried to make me pay double, he bailed on the job twice, allowed personal problems to affect his work, and is unbelievably unprofessional.
Kollin gave me a low bid and estimated one week completion time in an email. He measured the countertop area and took my new sink and fixture with him to his studio (and later refused to return them). He was having a problem with a flooring job that he had to re-​do and my bathroom countertop project was delayed a couple weeks. I was patient, but one day he had a meltdown and bailed on the job with a text saying «I’m going to return your deposit. sorry». The next day he changed his mind and said he would finish it. At this point I didn’t feel I had another option and he had my materials and money in his possession, so I agreed to let him continue.
A week later, he sent a photo showing the counter was poured (about halfway finished), but then he had another meltdown that included him calling and texting using very unprofessional language. He said he underbid the job and I would have to pay double, then said he was going to leave the unfinished counter in my driveway and that it would probably be cracked-​he said was mad about having to work on his birthday and a few other personal problems. The next day he admitted that he flipped out but was going to the beach and would not return my money. Kollin told me about recurring problems with many of his jobs that he underbid (I believe he does this to get hired) then complains about not making enough money and tries to get paid more than agreed, and in my case, threatened to hold my counter, sink & fixture, and deposit hostage-​later demanding a doubled price if I wanted the counter finished-​as if I wanted him to ever come near my house again. He appears to take no responsibility for his problems and blames his clients. I have had bad experiences with a couple self-​employed contractors in the past but did not review them because I don’t want to harm their livelihood and they were at least nice people. But in this case, I strongly believe this person should not be in this business and a recent review would have been a useful warning of what to expect and I wish I had that before hiring him.
In addition, he damaged my faucet set in his studio and REFUSED TO REFUND MY DEPOSIT for the job he bailed on. I honestly don’t know how he continues to get enough work to stay in business. I have proof of every fact mentioned in this review. He may bully unhappy clients and refuse to refund deposits for work he bailed on or damage he causes to property, but you can file in small claims court to get a judgment against him and file a complaint with the attorney general’s office. I filed a BBB complaint, but Kollin sent me an intimidating email that included stating that he was deleting and ignoring the messages from the BBB. I do not recommend him.

I wish I could comment on Kollin Baker’s work, but as he bailed on the job there is nothing I can say. We were in need of someone to refinish our concrete counters in the kitchen and master bath. Kollin came by and spent a lot of time talking about options, techniques, products, etc. He emailed me a quote for the work and we decided on a day for him to come over and start the work. The afternoon came and after he was 30 minutes late I texted him to find out if he was planning on showing up. He said that his child was sick and couldn’t make it. We rescheduled for the next day. 15 minutes after he was scheduled to arrive he texted me say that he was uncomfortable with his ability to the do the work and wasn’t going to come. Really? Wouldn’t a professional have considered that before giving an estimate for the work. Not impressed and not professional.

We found Kollin online and thought he would be awesome to come stain our floors. He showed up at our house and talked to us for over an hour about staining and colors and what to expect. We agreed to start the floors Saturday. Saturday came and went and we never heard from the guy. We texted him and called and wasted the day waiting for him. Short of death or getting arrested we can’t figure out why he would just stand us up. Probably got another higher paying job. The crappy part is we turned down a bunch of other bids for this guy.

Hardwood floors come and go, carpet is so passé, pergo is really just a cheap imitation — but concrete floors are the thing of the future. You might think to yourself that having a concrete floor is ugly and hideous, but when scored and stained properly and artistically, it looks awesome, it doesn’t absorb wine stains, and it does not scratch. Kollin Baker does these concrete floors for hip South Austin shops, restaurants, and homes, but he has also done most of the concrete floors for Austin Habitat For Humanity.
What about a concrete countertop? It takes about 4 guys to hoist it into place, but totally unique and it can take a beating. Kollin will make it any color you want. When we redo our kitchen in the spring, I’ll want mine red. And he’ll put dazzly gems in there, too, to make it sparkle.
I look forward to my kool konkrete kitchen by kollin.