I don't believe

[Chris Parks]

There are fine furniture makers that make a living making furniture. You won't find them on discussion boards, in magazines, or offering woodworking instruction 'in between commissions' to paying hobbyists.

They're too busy making.

They know that their customers are not other woodworkers. They're delighted you don't know who they are, because they wouldn't have time for you in the first place, and validation comes from the work and making a living from it, not from adoring subscribers to some magazine gasping its last breath.

The people you see in magazines aren't even close to the tip of the iceberg and in fact might be some of the least talented people around, comparatively speaking. Don't shrink your world unnecessarily. Gallery owners in large cities, employees of Sotheby's, Christie's, etc. know who these people are. You don't, because you think Popular Woodworking and Fine Woodworking, and the people who have time to appear in them, are the be-all and end-all when in fact they aren't even close. Many, if not most, don't have websites because they have virtually nothing to gain from one, they're busy enough as it is, and don't have time for tire-kickers who could afford the work only in their dreams.

Charles sums up what has been my experience. I know one who is making an excellent living and never has any shortage of work nearly all of it large stuff the average WW would not tackle. They are out there but you don't see them.

[Chuck Hill]

I wonder I f it is that younger people just have no life experience with things built with a quality that last generations. Now it’s all buy it use it. It breaks, throw it away buy a new one. Everything is ephemeral, so why spend more?

[Rob Luter]

I wonder I f it is that younger people just have no life experience with things built with a quality that last generations. Now it’s all buy it use it. It breaks, throw it away buy a new one. Everything is ephemeral, so why spend more?

That hits the nail on the head. To many out there it's a disposable world.

[Tom Beltran]

Currentflowwoodwork.com this is the story I push and deeply believe in. Im obsessed with tripod furniture. I will sell more stools than you because it’s my obsession, not yours. Find something that excites you and write fact and fantasy to create a world you feel good about. At least some people will dig it. You’re gonna hafta do a lot of talkin though. No one wants to buy from someone unwilling to engage.

I saw that with a neighbor, who made one thing, but had it down to a science. When I started working in my first rented shop space in 1979, my neighbor who was renting a space next to me, made redwood signs bearing the last name of the occupants of a home, which was meant to hang outside. He went to craft fares, took orders which were apparently paid up front, return to his shop, make, ship, and start over. He would make stacks of the signs every day. He had very little equipment, all craftsman tools - a radial arm saw, vacuum, hand belt sander, router, and a guide system to rout letters. And those signs were the only thing he made. He cut the redwood board to size, routed the letters, sprayed spray can black paint on the front, sanded the paint off the surface, leaving the black letters, sprayed clear lacquer, and he was done! He had a tremendous work ethic, and seemed happy, and made a living doing it. Apparently, he found something that worked, if not excited him, and this was also apparently better than other options available to him.

[Mark Wedel]

One thought about younger people wanting cheaper stuff - until they get to the point where they own a house and settle down, they might just not want the hassle of moving around big and heavy pieces of furniture. And until they are in a semi permanent residence, investing significant amount of money in a piece of furniture which may just not work in their next residence may not be very tempting.
I certainly know that some people, when doing a long distance move, find it easier (maybe not cheaper) to sell all their old stuff, and then just buy new (cheap) stuff at their new place, vs hiring movers, ending up with some things they don't need, and still needing to buy some other things they do need.
It might be that after these people have lived for a while in their new residence, they start investing in nicer/better quality/more expensive furniture since they know they will use it for a while. Sort of like how some people deal with tools - buy the cheap one first, figure out what you like/don't like/need from the tool, and then buy the expensive one that meets all those requirements.

[mike stenson]

It's not just younger people. Full grown, older than me, adults have baked heavily and then complained that I would charge them more than they would pay at Walmart for a piece. It's the same reason people balk at the cost of well made tools, or really anything.

Quantity trumps quality in the consumer marketplace.

[Jim Koepke]

It's not just younger people. Full grown, older than me, adults have baked heavily and then complained that I would charge them more than they would pay at Walmart for a piece. It's the same reason people balk at the cost of well made tools, or really anything.

Quantity trumps quality in the consumer marketplace.

Most of the time my tools are purchased to last. A few years back a fuel pump pressure gauge was purchased at Harbor Freight because it was likely only going to be used once in my lifetime.

If one wants quality at a discount, get up early on the weekends and comb the estate & yard sales then hit the flea markets. I have found many quality tools in those venues.

The majority of my woodworking tools were purchased second hand. When buying my first thought is if an item can be sold for as much or even more than what a seller is asking. During my more active buying days it was a regular habit of mine to keep track of auction prices.

jtk

[Scott Winners]

Contrary to most opinion here when I was selling dust extraction equipment it always astonished me how many customers were small commercial workshops that make a living out of woodworking of various types. I had an old customer call me last week because his VFD committed suicide and it has been many years since I have spoken to him. I had at least three customers who only did eye wateringly expensive tables and they seemed to do alright as well.

There is truth here. The business I think of as my one and only local purveyor of hardwoods is actually a millwork shop. They recently finished a re-org on the showroom. I took a class there last weekend to meet other folks interested in woodworking. Of 4 paying students, I was the only one that showed up for the class, so I had a couple hours one on one with the shop owner - but it is clear to me the showroom has been re-organized to act as inventory storage for the shop in the back. Everything in the back is 3 phase / 220 volt, except for the Sawstop tablesaw running on I think 20amp/ 220volt single phase. The owner has zero time left over to participate here.

In the showroom there are thousands of lineal feet of standard moldings in various woods, but really that is just 'something to do' for the part time employee when there isn't a custom job to be done.

The dust collector is outdoors, and easily 30 feet tall. At ground level is a RORO (roll on roll off) dumpster standard container size but maybe 3/4 of standard tall. The cyclone on that beast is 20 feet tall easy. The glue up room is 3 walls and open to the shop on the fourth side. The table in the middle is 8x8(ish) feet, and the three solid walls are all clamp clamp clamp with two small windows. I asked the owner if he had enough clamps and he said , "No, I need a lot more clamps." So we got that going for us, not even the pros have enough clamps.

The barrier to entry is the startup capital. Besides the dust collector, there are 3 planers at >24" that run on 3 phase 220, and the jointer. Then jointer is from 1909, no idea if the motor is original. The trouble is the fence goes out of square every time it is moved, and the outfeed table sags low to the right. There are many shims on the outfield table already. At the pace of that business, there is no option for the shop to be down while the jointer is rebuilt. When the new backordered (3 phase 220 volt) jointer is delivered, the 1909 jointer will be forklifted out to the barn, the new jointer comes in, the old jointer goes on CL, the shop stays open. And there is a shaper bigger than a dishwasher. And a flat bed sander at like 48x96 inches. Blast gates all over the place. And a finishing room.

If I had the money I could order all the interior trim for a 5k sqft home tomorrow morning and it would be ready Friday if they weren't working on someone else's millwork already next week.

The main thing I see about this business is the owner operator, and his wife/ bookkeeper and the sweating part timer all working. They are working with wood, but they are working hard. I am a hobbyist playing with wood. I already have a thing I work at to make money, and I am content to keep wood playing as a hobby of mine.

[Jim Koepke]

In the showroom there are thousands of lineal feet of standard moldings in various woods, but really that is just 'something to do' for the part time employee when there isn't a custom job to be done.

Many years ago there was a story on the radio about a small cabinet shop. When things were slow the owner had the workers build "rat boxes." These were small cages for rats used in a medical lab. The lab was a regular customer and would order up hundreds at a time. Instead of waiting for orders, the owner would build them ahead of time when things were slow. When an order came in they might have to build a few more, but the bulk of the order was in storage.

Many years ago my employment was in a print shop. Things were often slow at the beginning of the year. We would print up Christmas cards during this time. We always worked a little slower on those because we knew if new jobs didn't start coming in we would have a layoff for a week or two.

The moral of these stories is to have some nonessential work to fill the day during the slow times.

jtk