17 Reasons why a BestBath Accessible Bathroom Dealer should also use the Innovate Building Solutions and Fibo Wall Panel Program

Updated April 20, 2024 


Recently I had an accessible bathroom modifications contractor ask me a thought-provoking question when I asked him if he’d consider the Innovate Building Solutions dealership program. He said….

“Mike, why should I consider the Innovate Building Solutions/Fibo wall panel program when I already offer BestBath accessible bathroom products to my customers?

And as a guy who leads a company who also offers BestBath barrier free roll in pans, I can understand this dealer’s loyalty. After all here’s some benefits of using BestBath’s accessibility products for home modification projects:

• BestBath is a leader in accessible bathroom products. They’ve been manufacturing shower pans and wall panels for over 50 years.
• BestBath has responsive lead times – and when it comes to a bathroom modification project, being fast can be critical.
• BestBath systems are modular and simple to install.
• BestBath offers a large inventory of sizes and molds.
• A home access contractor can get a safe shower pan and wall panel system shipped together on the same order.
• BestBath offers code-compliant showers for ADA bathrooms.
• BestBath has a direct to stud installation with no need for backer board.
• BestBath employs some doggone nice people.

So, given all these selling points why should an accessible remodeling contractor consider using another line in tandem with BestBath? That’s a good question. 

In this article I’m going to detail 17 reasons a BestBath dealer should also consider the Innovate Building Solutions accessible bathroom dealership program as well. And if you’re asking if I have any ‘skin in the game?’ The simple answer is yes. I’ll ‘come clean’ (yes, that bad bathroom pun was intended!) and admit I’m the President of Innovate Building Solutions.

However, if you’re already a bathroom modifications dealer (or aspiring to grow your home modifications business to be one) and looking to expand your business,  here’s 4 benefits the Innovate Building Solutions dealership program (featuring decorative Fibo click together wall panels) in conjunction with your BestBath dealership can add to your success.

• Benefit #1 – You’ll be able to close more sales.
• Benefit #2 – You’ll increase your ability to sell into the higher margin ‘private pay’ retail bath remodeling market.
• Benefit #3 – You’ll differentiate your offerings from local competitors offering acrylic, fiberglass, or cultured stone products.
• Benefit #4 – You’ll be able to sell bathroom projects with wainscoting or wet room systems which extend beyond the alcove with a stylish (and labor-saving) wall panel system vs. needing to do a time-consuming tile installation.

So, let’s dig into the 17 reasons a BestBath dealer should also offer the Innovate Building Solutions and Fibo wall panel program. And I’ve also added 3 ‘bonus reasons’ which have been developed since the initial writing of this article (I’ll share them at the end). 

At the end I’d love to hear your opinion on the advantage of using the Innovate and BestBath programs together.  

Reason #1 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Not everyone likes fiberglass.

You’ll find people who’ve had builders grade fiberglass systems who are NOT excited about how they look or have found it difficult to clean their old fiberglass shower. Or, worse yet, their old fiberglass shower pan has cracked.

And while the BestBath system is likely better than their old fiberglass shower – it can be an uphill battle selling fiberglass depending on a prospect’s experience with this material.

Reason #2 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Molded wall panels – of any type – don’t look realistic.

I don’t care if you’re selling fiberglass walls from BestBath, acrylic walls from BCI, or cultured marble or granite shower surrounds from a local manufacturer, all molded walls look like…. molded walls.

Since the ‘faux grout joints’ in molded panels are the same color as the faux tile or stone pattern, they don’t look realistic.

You know they don’t look real.

And more importantly, the customer knows they don’t look real.

And even if you’ve got an age in place home modifications prospect who needs a safer and simpler (to clean) bathroom, this DOES NOT mean they’ll like the look of molded wall panels made of fiberglass, acrylic, or cultured stone.

Perhaps they (or their adult children) want the look of tile, or stone – but don’t want a product which is made in a mold (like acrylic, fiberglass, or cultured stone), or a system which is hard to maintain (like tile). This is where Fibo wall panels from Innovate come in.

These 3/8” thick high-pressure laminate panels are 3 dimensional. The faux grout joint is a different color than the tile or stone pattern. It’s so realistic, we’ve had other contractors telling our laminate wall panel installation crews, “Hey dude, that’s a nice tile job!” (since even professional contractors don’t realize it’s not tile!).

Reason #3 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Your customers can ‘see’ the completed look of their bathroom and get excited about their accessible remodel BEFORE you start the project.

Accessible bathrooms DO NOT have to look institutional. And when you look at a molded 8” x 8” tile, subway tile, or 12” x 18” tile patterns they aren’t the most exciting (or trendsetting) images.

But imagine you could not only show 45 degree and 90-degree herringbone patterns, but marble or 3-dimensional stone looks, or a cracked cement pattern as well in a 3d bath visualizer. Don’t you think it’d get prospects excited to purchase from you? Or maybe they’d enthusiastically brag to their neighbors and relatives about their new bathroom – even though it’s fully (or partially) funded by a government agency with the purpose of keeping them safe.

Take a spin through the Innovate Bathroom Visualizer Program below and imagine getting your age in place customers (or their adult children) excited to spend money with you (and share their finished pictures on social media) – even though this project was driven by safety, simplicity and need.

Reason #4 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Custom sized walls are NO PROBLEM. And more importantly – NO EXTRA COST!

When you know you need a custom sized shower do you start getting shivers up your spine and wonder if the project will become too expensive and the time you invested quoting the project would be wasted?

What’s nice about the Fibo wall panels from Innovate is they’re 23.6” and click and lock together (like laminate flooring). So, even if you have a 60” back wall, or a 66” back wall, or 72” back wall, you’ll still use the same number of panels (three panels in this example). So, a custom sized 72” back will cost you NO MORE than a standard 60” back wall.

So, when you’ve got custom-sized showers (whether they’re bigger or smaller) you’ll save money because you can cut the Innovate Fibo panels to size without buying a custom wall panel kit.

Reason #5 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – You can make your panels fit the walls. You don’t have to alter your walls to fit the panels.

As my dad used to say, “Michael, you can’t fit 10 lb. of manure (OK, he used a more ‘flowery’ word than that…but this is a professional bathroom blog) into a 5 lb. bag.”

And if you’re dealing with walls inside an alcove opening which is too small or out of square – it can be hard to fit a square BestBath wall panel system into an incorrectly shaped alcove hole.

With laminate wall panels from Innovate – the panels are cut and fit to your customers’ walls (no matter how wacky they are), and not the other way around.

Reason #6 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – There’s 31 patterns available from stock.

There’s no reason to wait to get wall panels (or even a standard sized stone low profile shower pan). With the Innovate stocking program you’ll have 29 laminate wall panels available for immediate shipment (and also 1 1/6” low profile stone shower pans to go with them).

You can even mix the patterns together in the same order. Let’s say your customer wants to jazz things up and use a bold Black Hexagon pattern on their ‘back wall’ (which could be any dimension – standard or custom) and use a softer, distinguished pattern like Bianco marble on the side walls. This is NO PROBLEM. And this is NO EXTRA COST.

Accessible, safe bathroom design doesn’t need to be boring. Your project can be as exciting (and brag-worthy) as a tile job –WITHOUT the maintenance which your customer neither needs nor wants. And recommend your customer shares their finished project on social media to drive more referrals to you.

Reason #7 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – You can reach the ceiling (and your cost per square foot of wall space will be less).

Who likes to clean the space between the top of their shower surrounds and the top of their 8’ ceiling? ‘Er, that’d be NO ONE!

Or what bathroom remodeling contractor enjoys fixing walls above shower surrounds which don’t reach the ceiling? ‘Er, that’d be NO ONE!

So, why not eliminate this problem with floor to ceiling laminate wall panels? Since the Fibo panels through Innovate Building Solutions are 94.4” high – they’ll reach the top of an 8’ ceiling with either a curbed or ramped shower pan. This will be less maintenance for your age in place or accessible customer, or for their adult kids who are helping to maintain their home.

Reason #8 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – You can get colored and textured wall panel patterns at the same cost as white materials (and they’ll reach the top of an 8’ ceiling).

If you’re looking to enter the ‘private pay’ retail bathroom market, you’ll face stiff competition. You’ll find companies who not only market the daylights out of ‘one day bathrooms,’ but they’re also selling wall panel systems that reach the ceiling. The need to have 8’ panels are basically a ‘rite of passage’ to compete in the retail market.

So, if you want to grow with higher margin tub-to-shower conversions focused on the larger private pay market, ask yourself how will fiberglass 81” high wall panels compete against the ‘behemoth’ acrylic marketing giants who are selling floor-to-ceiling panels?

You’ll need to differentiate yourself beyond your age in place and accessibility expertise (which is excellent but may not matter to all prospects).

You’ll need products which excite your customers and are still cost-effective on a square foot basis.

With the Innovate program 85% of the colored and textured patterns are the SAME COST as standard white panels AND they’ll all reach the top of an 8’ ceiling with a barrier free or low profile shower pan.

Reason #9 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Delivery fees are built into the price.

Delivery fees can be infuriating (especially if you forget to add them into the customer’s quote). In most states the Innovate pricing includes delivery to your door, or to your customer’s door.

Reason #10 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Your riches can be in the niches.

If you’re like me, your spouse can fill up those shower niches faster than you can say ‘one Scaramucci’ (a reference for those of you who follow politics like me!). And maybe it’s why she looks pretty, and I don’t!

However, if you think about it, a shower can be more stylish, safer, and simpler to clean when you offer your customer the right niches and shelves. And it’ll be easier to use when you place them where your customer needs them (up high, down low, vertically on a narrow wall or horizontally on a long wall).

Imagine offering 7 unique sizes (up to 58” x 14” in a horizontal orientation or 14” x 58” high with 3 shelves in a vertical orientation) in 10 different finishes – all without grout joints.

When you’ve got a molded fiberglass system your niche sizing and placement is limited to where they’re located in the predesigned molds. This may not be optimal for every accessible, age in place, or V.C. (vertically challenged) customer.

Reason #11 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – A one person wall panel installation is possible.

Since Fibo laminate panels through Innovate are 23.6” wide x 94.4” high x 3/8” thick and weigh 26 lbs. per piece, one person can install them. This can provide more flexibility staffing a project.

Reason #12 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Smooth (and matte finish) wall panels are available in any size.

Maybe your customer is dead set against a tile or stone look. They want smooth white walls (like their old acrylic system) because they believe they’ll be easier to clean. Or maybe they want a colored pattern to create a sense of calm in the room (or to provide a visual differentiation between the wall panels and the shower pan for safety). With the Innovate offerings, there are 7 smooth wall panels in stock which can be used in any sized shower or tub surround.

And don’t forget the growing popularity of matte finishes today (like you’re seeing matte black and brushed nickel hardware). With the Innovate program, there are 20 matte and semi-gloss wall panels in stock. You’ll have choices to delight waiver or private pay customers alike.

Reason #13 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – You don’t need to stop your sales with the shower or tub alcove. Panels can be used for bathroom wainscoting or wet rooms.

Perhaps you’ve got a customer who wants wainscoting along the bathroom walls. Or maybe you’ve got a request for a one level wet room which looks sleek and contemporary, yet still works for someone using a wheelchair or walker. All this is possible with laminate panels where you simply click and lock as many 2’ wide panels per wall as needed together to make your custom shower and bathroom configuration work.

And if you’re not sure how many panels you’d need for any sized complete bathroom or shower project watch the video below or read How to Order Fibo Laminate Shower and Bathtub Wall Panels.

Reason #14 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – You can get a decorative low-profile shower pan with TONS of weight capacity (or use your barrier free ramped pan from BestBath).

When it comes to shower wall panels (or shower pans) a one-size-fits-all approach is NOT the way things work (and I’m sure that’s why BestBath offers many curb and ramp styles as well).



Some clients need a barrier-free ramped pan. Others want a low-profile base which doesn’t look as institutional as a ramped pan (and besides ramped pans aren’t good for resale). Still others need a pan which will stand up to a lot of weight. And still others want a stylish pan to make them feel they’re in an upscale hotel bathroom – even if they’ve modified their personal bathroom due to a health challenge.

And the key to taking care of everyone is options.

With the Innovate program you can add low-profile (1 1/6” curb high) matte finish stone shower pans with 2 tons (yes, you heard that right….4,000 lbs.) of weight capacity. You’ll know this pan won’t cause call backs – no matter who(m) is using the shower pan at one time.

Or if you need a ramped pan from BestBath, it’ll work perfectly with the Fibo laminate wall panels as well.

Reason #15 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Full sheets of backer board can be used behind the panels, so adding future accessories is safe and simple.

Since many laminate wall panel installations use ½” OSB (Oriented Strand Board or plywood) behind the wall, your customer will be ready to add a fold down seat or more shelving if it’s needed later at a cost-effective price.

Reason #16 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Experienced partners and systems with sales-boosting warranties.

As you know, with any product you sell you’re putting your reputation on the line. You don’t want to sell an unproven system which fails down the road. You don’t want to be left ‘holding the bag.’

You want proven products and proven suppliers.

Your customer wants proven products and proven suppliers and contractors.

Since Fibo (as a wall panel manufacturing partner) has been around for 41 years selling these popular click-lock panels in Europe, you’ll know there’s a proven track-record behind these materials. This will reinforce the lifetime guarantee provided with the product.

And when you’re working with Innovate Building Solutions, you’ll know you’re also working with a debt-free company whose been selling high-quality bathroom products in the United States for 46 years (since 1977).

Reason #17 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – You can sell a complete shower kit (including the door) to simplify purchasing for your customers and improve your bottom line.

If you’re not offering shower doors today, you may be missing the ‘boat’ (or the ‘glass boat’ you might say). Many people want shower doors, or glass  shower screens for custom or alcove showers. This will only be a source of additional profit for your business – but in many cases you’ll need to offer doors to compete in the retail bathroom remodeling market.

With the Innovate complete replacement shower kit program you’ll not only get safe, simple, and stylish shower wall panels, but also stone shower pans, and a selection of 3/8” thick, brushed nickel finish, glass shower doors with glass breakage (for safety) and glass surface protection (for ease of cleaning). And it’s nice to know they’re available for immediate shipment in standard sizes.

Why not offer the whole bundle and make it easier for your customer to buy a complete job and add to your bottom line?

Now – here’s the 3 ‘bonus reasons’ to add these Fibo wall panels:

Bonus Reason #1 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – It’s far easier to store materials in your warehouse.

If you’re doing a large amount of waiver work which has driven you to inventory BestBath panels in your warehouse you KNOW they take up A LOT of room. With Fibo laminate wall panels through Innovate – they’re not only tall enough to reach the ceiling (which has been mentioned earlier), but they stack horizontally in so you fit a lot of showers in a small space. And if your shop isn’t as big as you’d like this can be a major benefit. 

Bonus Reason #2 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – There’s NOT a lot of storage in the BestBath premade panels

Let’s face facts – people (and especially my wife if you were living in my house) have a lot more ‘products’ (not only soap and shampoo, but face creams, moisturizers, you name it). The small prebuilt storage shelves in the BestBath system don’t provide the amount of shower storage many people need. With laminate wall panels you can add either oversized recessed niches (like you’ll see below) or corner shelves to your heart’s content.  

Bonus Reason #3 to Offer the Innovate Program in tandem with your BestBath Program – Take advantage of the bulk buying discounts (or group crating discounts) when you buy more than one system

If your like most bathroom remodeling or home access contractors I talk to, people are today are tighter with their money than they were during the pandemic (when they were boosted by government cash, we’re traveling or going to restaurants) and were anxious to find a contractor to improve their home (and that’s IF they could get on their schedules). However, today times have changed. Inflation is still rearing it’s ugly head, there are more places to spend money, and owners are ‘shopping their jobs’ to save a few bucks. 

And the challenge you have as an accessibility contractor is how can you provide a better ‘value’ to your prospect than your competitor? Well one way to provide more value is to buy better. And if you can buy more than one system at a time, you’ll be eligible for a group crating discount. And if you can buy in bulk (8 showers are more), there’s a bulk buying discount which saves you 10-15% depending if you need a ‘lift gate’ or have a ‘lift truck’ to unload. 15% is a lot of money and can help you win a few deals you may be losing today AND you can offer products which are far nicer than the ‘bath in a day’ acrylic competitors who don’t know diddly about making a bathroom safe (although they’ll tell a customer, they’re the experts!) 

So – do you think it makes sense to use the Innovate bathroom dealership program in conjunction with your BestBath program? How can I assist you next?

After reading these 17 reasons do you think it makes sense to use the Innovate program in conjunction with your BestBath accessibility and ADA products? Why or why not? I’d love to hear your comments below.

To learn more about the Innovate dealership program and how to successfully implement it in your business, I’d be glad to help. Take one of these steps:

• Call 888-467-7488 and ask to speak to Mike about our bathroom modifications dealership
• Request free laminate wall panel samples.
• Fill out our become a dealer form.

Thanks for reading and learning more about our Fibo laminate wall panels, stone low profile shower pans, and complete shower kits. I look forward to assisting you – Mike.

Mike Foti,

President, Innovate Building Solutions

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In addition, if you’d like to connect on LinkedIn, you’ll find me at

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikefoti/