MOST PEOPLE MAY FIND IT DIFFICULT TO REMEMBER WHAT THEY WERE doing in 1999. Ryan DeCesaro isn’t one of them. It was his first year embarking on a career designing and building luxury custom cabinets for Morgan Creek Cabinet Company. Long before he entered the cabinet industry, he developed a passion for woodworking and furniture making, learning the craft of building something from the ground up. When he moved to Georgia in 1999, he found limited job opportunities in custom furniture building, so he pivoted to pursuing a practical career building cabinetry. Little did he know at the time, but taking a position at Morgan Creek was going to become a lifetime venture, in which he could help shape the company’s reputation for exceptional custom cabinetry.
During his career at Morgan Creek, he became one of the partners and later, in 2019, he bought the entire company. His down-to-earth demeanor belies the depth and breadth of the custom capabilities his craftsmen represent as they create what he labels as “very customizable” cabinetry. As a boutique-style company, Morgan Creek focuses more on providing a high-quality product and experience than it does in producing a high volume of cabinets. “Our hands-on, personalized attention to each of our client’s homes is one of our differentiators in the market,” DeCesaro says. “Keeping the company small allows us to provide highly customized products.” With just a select few craftsmen on staff, Morgan Creek has become one of Atlanta’s go-to cabinetmakers for highly bespoke and architecturally distinct products.
The Morgan Creek team is as comfortable working individually with homeowners on renovation projects as they are designing storage solutions in conjunction with architects and interiors designers for new construction projects or full-scale renovations. “We have successfully designed and installed cabinetry not only in kitchens and baths but also home offices, bars and any place a woodworking solution is needed,” DeCesaro says.
Because of the detailed nature of building custom cabinetry, DeCesaro became unhappy with having the company’s production facility located at a distance in Pennsylvania. “Our production has varied between Atlanta and Pennsylvania over the years, but I felt it was time we brought everything back to the Atlanta area,” he says. “There’s a lot of back-and-forth communication between our clients and the Morgan Creek team as we are designing and building cabinets to solve aesthetic and storage needs for projects. Having an open flow of communication is vital to the process, and relocating fabrication near our design studio has become a better way to serve our clients.” Having the manufacturing facility in Atlanta also enables better quality control and faster turnarounds. These attributes allow DeCesaro to continue providing homeowners with a chance to review and respond during the design phase of their cabinetry without negatively impacting lead times. Shortening the distance between the showroom and manufacturing locations also smooths the back and forth with clients, as DeCesaro provides full drawings and elevations and then engages clients in a discussion about the architectural details they would like to add to their cabinets. The new setup improves the fluidity of the dialogue that takes place before the cabinets ever get sent to production.
Morgan Creek Cabinet Company’s showroom is located in Westside Atlanta, where clients can visit by appointment to gather inspiration to design their own cabinetry in traditional, transitional and modern styles. Its new manufacturing facility is located in Smyrna, closing the geographical distance between the two company divisions.
While a majority of its clientele is in Metro Atlanta, the team builds cabinets across the Southeast, sometimes to great acclaim. Working in partnership with designer Valerie Garrett Interiors, for instance, Morgan Creek recently was recognized as a Southeastern finalist in the annual Sub-Zero and Wolf kitchen design contest. “Not only is the quality of Morgan Creek cabinets outstanding, but the attention to detail and furniture craftsmanship that Ryan brings to every project truly sets him and Morgan Creek apart,” says Garrett.
In the past, Morgan Creek Cabinet Company also has been honored by the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art with the prestigious Philip Trammell Shutze Award for Craftsmanship.
Homeowners and architects often prefer working with locally owned companies; it’s a way to support the community and the craftsmen who live and work in the area. It’s nice to know that homeowners can get the highest-quality custom cabinets made to order to their exact specifications, and that Morgan Creek Cabinet Company is easy to work with and geographically convenient.
Not only does Morgan Creek provide cabinets for a room refresh, DeCesaro also can help homeowners by making recommendations about the products needed to complete a room, including stone countertops, appliances, plumbing and hardware.
Morgan Creek produces its own line of vanities to help homeowners and designers experience a flexible and easy-to-manage custom design process. The bathroom vanity collection features six different designs of vanities and storage cabinets that clients can customize by choosing their own materials, finishes, sizes and architectural details to suit their specific projects and inject a bit of their personality into the vanity. “This line gives smaller designers and homeowners a more affordable solution that is just as customizable as our fully custom cabinetry,” says DeCesaro. “We are making custom more accessible.”
Incorporating Morgan Creek cabinets into a home is part of a true gracious living experience. “Morgan Creek has been handcrafting timeless, tailor-made cabinetry for decades,” DeCesaro says. “We are experts in both design and technique, handcrafting each cabinet using the highest-quality materials to create modern heirlooms for a thoughtfully designed home. We serve homeowners, builders, interior designers and architects with the highest standards of quality and style.” *
Dana W. Todd is a professional writer specializing in interior design, real estate, luxury homebuilding, landscape design, architecture and fine art.
