Two businesses shutting down, Southern California

[Mark Gibney]

A friend texted me yesterday to tell me two well established woodworking business here in SoCal are closing down.
One is Drees Wood Products in Paramount City. I get my drawer boxes from Drees and they are great to work with. Ed Drees, the owner, will be retiring.

The other business is a Woodcraft store in Fountain Valley, Orange County. Ingko, the owner, has apparently been looking for a buyer but hasn't found one.

That's all I know about this.

[Pat Germain]

I haven't lived there in many years, but I'm an OC native and I still have many cousins who live there. It's a bummer when good, local small businesses shut down. Can't blame a guy for retiring. And it must be tough to keep a Woodcraft store going in Orange County. I expect the rent is astronomical.

Such threads often turn to the post-apocalyptic scenarios in California which are constantly presented on TV news. No doubt California has many problems. I was in OC just a few weeks ago and it's still a very nice, very safe place to live. Although it is crazy expensive.

[Richard Coers]

Woodcraft franchises are a brutal business to run. Corporate sends out information about a sale directly to customers, and then folks go into the store to get the price. The store didn't advertise the sale, or plan on it, but usually match the price. But they still have to send in the fee to corporate on the sale.

[Jim Morgan]

Woodcraft franchises are a brutal business to run. Corporate sends out information about a sale directly to customers, and then folks go into the store to get the price. The store didn't advertise the sale, or plan on it, but usually match the price. But they still have to send in the fee to corporate on the sale.

Peoria Woodcraft shut down several years ago. Now you have to go to Pekin.

[Pat Germain]

A few months ago I bought a Sawstop PCS from the Colorado Springs Woodcraft. They were great. The manager told me he is selling a LOT of Sawstop table saws. I hope that keeps them in business.

[Richard Coers]

Peoria Woodcraft shut down several years ago. Now you have to go to Pekin.

I was really sad about the Peoria store closing, it was just around the corner from me. I taught classes there all the time, and did Saturday demos. Even got the employee discount after my first year of teaching.

[Andrew Hughes]

I didn’t like hearing Drees products is closing. I’ve bought cabinet doors for the reef tanks I used to make for a friends business. They made perfect doors for a great price.
I rather hear Horrible fraud is closing. What a backwards time we live in.
Good Luck

[Rick Potter]

To my knowledge, that Woodcraft is the only one in the greater LA region, and it was about an hour drive for me. We do have a small Rockler about 10 miles away, but the selection is no where near what Woodcraft had.

Pretty well underrepresented for an area as big as LA basin.

[Pat Germain]

I didn’t like hearing Drees products is closing. I’ve bought cabinet doors for the reef tanks I used to make for a friends business. They made perfect doors for a great price.
I rather hear Horrible fraud is closing. What a backwards time we live in.
Good Luck

The owner of Drees is retiring. Can't blame a guy for retiring. I have no way of knowing if he tried to sell the business, but if he did and there were no takers, I agree that suggests a backwards time.