About Us
Our Mission
At Porch Concepts, we are committed to providing sustainable and eco-friendly outdoor furniture options. We believe in creating beautiful outdoor spaces while minimizing our impact on the environment. Join us in embracing a greener future for outdoor living!
Our Story
Porch Concepts came to be in October of 2015. We are family owned and operated by Irish immigrant, Mary Maki, and her husband, Paul Maki. Mary and Paul have a 35 year history of building stunning sunroom additions and offering outdoor furniture for families in Coastal North Carolina.
These days, Paul & Mary fuel their passion of helping others embrace life outdoors with our new outdoor furniture showroom, officially completed in December of 2023! With our new expansive showroom, we have over 24,000 feet of show space with something for everyone. While we no longer build sunrooms, we do assist in furnishing and decorating them with the help of our skillful design consultant team.
Meet the Team
Paul & Mary Maki
Our Founders
Growing up in the west of Ireland and sharing a home with nine brothers and sisters, Mary learned at a young age that everything has value. Her beginnings were full of color! Using these colorful surroundings, her mother inspired the children to paint to enhance their young creative minds and to foster cheer for one another and the community. This imaginative approach taken by her mother would come to serve Mary greatly in life.
Paul and Mary have been designing beautiful award-winning sunrooms since 1985. While passionate about enhancing the value and quality of the home, their creative and colorful sides still desired more. The perfect solution came to them; sister company Porch Conversion builds your dream sunroom, while Porch Concepts furnishes & decorates it! Porch Concepts was born to bring even more joy to their sunroom customers. Now you can add a sunroom to the home and truly make it yours with all the color and furnishings you desire. Building these outdoor retreats is now easier then ever.
Mary is making her American dream come true by helping everyone in our community build theirs!
Emily Kirk
General Manager
Emily has dedicated four years to our growing team, and is a vital part of the Porch Concepts customer experience. She began her furniture industry journey at a family-owned Ashley Home Store. Emily led her team in sales, mostly due to her excellence in customer service.
She loves all things Harry Potter and Disney. She is a Gettsyberg, Pennsylvania native, and has called Wilmington home for 15 years now! On her days off she is spending quality time with her husband, daughter and 2 crazy corgis!
Ginny Smith
Design Consultant
Ginny is a recent UNCW grad orginally from the sandhills of the state, in Sanford, North Carolina. When she's not helping customers find the perfect porch furniture, she can be found hanging out at Wrighsville Beach, paddleboarding, taking a hot yoga class, or painting! Ginny loves the Carolina Tarheels and of course, the UNCW Seahawks!
Sarah Wood
Design Consultant
Sarah, a West Virgina University grad from Maryland, brings her love of the WVU Mountaineers and Baltimore Ravens to the NC coast. Fashion forward and having an eye for all things beautiful, Sarah adds her special touch to all design consultations. Outside of the showroom, Sarah is passionate about her two dogs, neighborhood and beach walks, and Taylor Swift. As a new member to Wilmington community, Sarah is most excited to connect with new people in the area!
