National Hardwood Magazine - Christmas 2022

2023 HARDWOOD PURCHASING PLANS Continued
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residential building is pulling back. We have already
started seeing it in our area.
This year, MDF doors have remained steady, while
mouldings seem to have been lagging behind.
Beech on the stain grade was one of our preferred
products in 2022. The increased price for Poplar really
threw off our customers that we had cultivated on those
products through the years. I believe that it is going to be
slow to rebuild now that Poplar prices have come down
MERRICK GROUP : Merrick Hardwoods •
Somerset Pellet Fuel • Kentucky Hardwood Lumber
Company, Inc. • Interstate Hardwoods, Inc.
+1 (606) 561-4146 • merrickhardwoods.com
some. This made us look for other options.
In 2023 our focus will be on CNC products, sheet
goods. We will still have our lumber products customers
and will continue to take care of their needs.
Transportation has continued to be a problem. It
seems that we have 100 percent difficulty with the transportation
on incoming items. The pipelines on sheet
goods are horrible. It’s a daily fight to find enough to
keep production rolling. Plants are getting hit with the
same “work force” problems that all
of us face.
We have struggled to find those
needed workers. We have raised
wages. We have implemented
bonus programs. It still continues
to be a daily problem. I think we
needed the “slowing down of the
demand” to heal the supply chains.
I don’t think however that we need
the slowdown that, I believe, we
are about to see. Our demand for
lumber and cabinet door products
has remained steady. At this point
it is less than steady. s
CHRIS MURPHY
MISSOURI HARDWOODS
PRODUCTS
BRIGHTON, MO
Lumber buying this year varied
greatly. 2022 started off weak, increased
mid-year, then died back
down. We have been purchasing
quite a bit, while many of the
other companies in the area have
quit buying for the year. I anticipate
that purchasing will slow down the
first of the year and hopefully pick
back up mid-year next year if the prices of lumber increase
again.
We deal in larger plank flooring, especially in White
Oak (3 1/4 and 4"), that’s what sold the best over the
past year. Hickory pre-finish has also been a preferred
product this year. We handle Select grades in Red Oak
as well, in thicknesses of 2-1/4 and 3-1/4, although it has
been harder to move.
We are trying to offer more products to tradesmen that
they may need for installation to
help make it a one stop trip.
However, we will probably stay
true to Hardwood flooring and not
offer many more products beyond
what we currently do.
Transportation has been difficult
in the way of rising cost of fuel,
and natural disasters, they have
both slowed down shipping for us.
Cost seems to be the biggest issue
though. Timing has not been
impacted, however.
Our facility is very remote for the
area. This, as well as the shortage
of employees, has made it hard to
obtain workers. We have been trying
to busy ourselves in the community,
homeowners’ association,
our local commerce and online advertising
to increase potential employees
and sales. We also offer a
lot of amenities to our employees
such as paid medical, employer
matched 401K and production
bonuses. We have been cutting
back on unnecessary expenses
to help offer a better wage for our
employees as well as a chance to
earn raises based on attendance
and devotion to their job. We want
to reward those that want a job,
and work hard to keep it. Having
happy, hardworking employees,
no matter how small the amount,
is better than having a surplus of
uneager employees just here to
make a paycheck. Subpar employees
also increase the chance
of having lower quality products going out the door. We
just can't have that.
The fluctuation in the wood flooring industry has made
a huge impact on the supply/demand issue. There is a
lot of uncertainty in this industry at the moment for both
suppliers of raw material, and manufacturers like us.
The lower cost of green lumber makes it hard for loggers
to sell their supplies. If they feel the cost is too low,
Happy
Holidays
Thank you for a great 2022!
763-425-8700 | inquiries@midwesthardwood.com
9540 83rd Avenue North, Maple Grove MN, 55369
midwesthardwood.com
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