Jan 5 2009
Whole Log Lumber, a North Carolina company that sells reclaimed wood, is celebrating 25 years in business. The award-winning company is based out of Zirconia, and has been creating antique wood flooring products in their own Green River mill for more than two decades. In a time of economic downturns, when many companies are struggling, it is expected that this "green" lumber company will continue to grow.
Started in 1984, Whole Log Lumber was a company that was ahead of their time as far as the environment is concerned.
The company is owned and operated by Loy Lauden and Jim Stowell. Seeing the possibilities with recycled lumber, they started their mill to produce quality building products from reclaimed materials.
"We were green before it was cool. We began our solid wood floor operations with hardwood floors of pine at our antique lumber mill in Western North Carolina in 1984," says Jim Stowell.
The company produces antique wood paneling, beams, hearths, and other products. But, according to Jim, their specialty is antique flooring products, and specifically heart pine. "We work with reclaimed lumber & flooring of cypress, oak & chestnut. But long leaf yellow pine flooring, also known as heart pine - is our specialty."
Reclaimed hardwood flooring offers some distinct advantages over new-growth products. It isn't just a sustainable solution, it has more depth of character, richness of color and tight grain pattern styling that has persisted for generations already.
It is expected that this is one company that will see continued growth. They operated solely out of North Carolina for their first twenty years in business. Their initial success is due mostly to their attention to detail and a focus on service.
"…we're proud of the fact that our focus is on building relationships and fine homes rather than sales and promotion. For 20 years our customer referrals were our only advertising."
When they took their business online in 2004 the business saw bigger growth, with an expanded marketplace, and in 2007 they were featured as one of the top ten success stories in the annual report from North Carolina's Small Business & Technology Development Center (SBTDC).
Going green has been a focus of many companies in the past couple of years. When it comes to Whole Log Lumber though, they have been working towards sustainability for more than two decades now, and will continue to do so for years to come.
It will be interesting to see what the future holds for this innovative company.