We moved into our new shop a March 1st2018. We hobbled along for the first few weeks, but we are now moving full steam ahead with fancy new machines, workspace, and an actual showroom to show clients our work, all fairly big changes.
The old shop was located behind my house for the last nine years. A typical client visit included a tour through my living room, kitchen, and sometimes the bathrooms. My house is a bit of an art gallery; we’ve made just about everything in the home – down to the wood floors. Most everyone enjoyed the experience of getting to know their craftsman’s work on a personal level. However, there were some people who were obviously looking for more of a Home Depot experience. The new shop has a formal showroom with a working kitchen model to show the standard fit and finish of our cabinetry, our Z couch and chairs, a wall covered in sample boards, and whatever miscellaneous project we are showing off. The upstairs of the shop is where we store our veneer. I call it our veneer gallery. It’s where a client can come and see what high quality and rare veneer feels and looks like in raw form.
At the old shop, our forklift was parked under a lean-to porch roof. We would drive it over the brick paver walkway out the front driveway, down the street, and over one block to a commercial district to pick up our materials a couple of times a week. Luckily, because I live downtown, neither the cops nor code enforcement ever hassled us.
The new shop’s roof is covered in solar panels which produces more electricity than we use, even when using A/C in the building. We compress our own natural gas from the utility company that then fuels our work van. We have an electric vehicle charging station in case we have a client that would like to charge their car during a visit.
We won an a Beautification Award from the city for using all Florida natives in our landscape. Hummingbirds and butterflies fly around the outside of our shop! The shop sits between Depot Park and a creek, which might explain why we caught a leather back turtle hiding under one of our bushes. We returned the turtle, as well as the snakes we have found, to a more hospitable ecosystem.
Our shop dog, Ivey, is usually sleeping, goosing clients, or running around the parking lot as if she were back on the race track. We keep her from wandering off the property with an electric gate that automatically opens once a client’s car pulls onto the property.
If you are anywhere in Florida and are in the market for some quality custom furniture or some Modern Kitchen or bathroom cabinets, please set up a time to stop by. If you are outside of Florida, we ship using a blanket wrap service or crated freight.
Yours,
-jason