WINSLOW—What do you do when you have an extra garage sitting around in the middle of nowhere?

Craig Stanton, a 47-year-old professional car detailer, took a look at the garage that had outlived its usefulness for his detail business and decided it would make the perfect structure to smash wine bottles, old electronics, and other bound-for-the-dump junk.

On November 1, he opened a business out of that garage called The Rage Room. A “rage room” is a trend that took off in Japan around 2008 to support employees of large companies who used them as a way to relieve stress after a long, packed work day. 

“I followed a few business owners around the country who own these rage rooms and was scrolling through TikTok one day and thought, why not?” he said.  “It’s a great reliever for stress and to take out rage on used items.”

It’s a controlled environment where patrons can rent the room for 20-30 minutes and let loose by throwing glass bottles against the wall or venting some frustration using a bat or sledgehammer to bust open old printers. But, mostly it’s just fun.

He said the town planning board was “super excited” when he told them what he wanted to do with the garage.

“A woman from the town office told me, ‘I could use one of those this morning.’”

Packages start at $20 for one person with 20 minutes to demolish a box of 15 items and go up to $225 for five people up to 45 minutes to break more than 65 items. Stanton provides them with protective headgear, protective goggles, cut resistant gloves, and ensures that the clothing they are wearing is suitably protected.

He has a Plexiglass window to keep an eye on his customers and cameras, in case customers want a recording of their rage session.

“Inside there’s a lot of smashing, and clanging, and ka-booming,” he said. “I also hooked up a Bluetooth stereo system, so they can play their own music.”

Rage Against The Machine, perhaps? Or Enya?

Statistically, women make up the majority of the clientele at most rage rooms around the world. The toll that the last three years of the pandemic has taken on working women as well as the political erosion of their rights might provide some clues into that.

“Most of the customers we’ve had have been couples, mother-daughter combos, or five women at a time,” he said. “I think they just like to break stuff and then they don’t have to clean it up.”

Stanton sources his inventory from yard sales and collecting bottles. “For $40 bucks, I can haul away two truckloads of stuff.”

He takes care to dispose of the broken stuff conscious of the environmental impact.

“We recycle all of the glass and the metal goes to a metal scrap bin. People just love it,” he said. “They say it’s better than going to the gym. Better than yoga. People will come out of the room, sweating, and just wear themselves out.”

To book a session, visit his Facebook page or call for an appointment (207) 250-1923.

Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com