National Hardwood Magazine - Christmas 2022

2023

2023 Hardwood Purchasing Plans While Challenges Persist There Is Hope For The Coming Year Compiled by Cadance Hanson Editor’s Note: The following is an exclusive annual report compiled by National Hardwood Magazine about the 2023 purchasing plans of several of North America’s largest Hardwood lumber buyers. The market has varied throughout 2022, often varying greatly throughout the year for distribution yards and end users alike. Many lumber buyers said that they will continue to have lower levels of inventory as they continue to watch inflation and interest rates. As finding quality employees continues to be a struggle for many industries, the lumber industry is no different. Many business operators said that they are offering proper compensation packages, like employer matched 401K and production bonuses, as well as new hire bonuses and bonuses based on employee referrals. While there is still a lot of uncertainty plaguing every facet of this industry right now, many believe that things will begin to turn around in 2023. ERIC BOER MASON’S MILL AND LUMBER HOUSTON, TX While much of 2022 was a challenge with keeping what we needed on the floor and trying to keep costs as manageable as possible, we’ve seen things loosen up going into the fall and winter. Our expectations are that trends will continue, and we’ll see shorter lead times and continued softening on prices. On that basis, we’ve been trimming down stock levels and holding off on forward purchasing where possible. I expect that to be normal for a while moving forward. Despite significant headwinds on a lot of fronts, 2022 was a very good year for almost everyone I’ve spoken with. There were very few slow-moving items, and, in fact, some items were downright difficult to secure for much of the first half of the year. As with most folks, White Oak was the hot ticket along with Poplar over the course of the year. We struggled at times to ensure we had ample stocks on hand in some White Oak and Poplar items, but overall, with a little planning, we were able to keep inventory on hand to satisfy our customers. While rift cut White Oak was and still is in extremely high demand, we saw a surge in interest in both plain sawn and quarter sawn White Oak which I feel was, in part, a reaction to the incredibly steep climb in rift sawn White Oak pricing. Other lines we saw increase in demand and popularity were the thermally modified woods, including Ash and assorted softwoods. We expect the interest and demand to continue to grow in these modified woods and look forward to other Hardwoods like Red Oak being introduced into this field. We’ve positioned ourselves aggressively to stay on the forefront of this new technology and the products thereof. Increased freight costs had a significant impact on the cost of both domestic and imported wood products all year. While freight costs continue to be high, we’ve seen a little softening, especially on ocean freight. I’ve heard from many of my counterparts in the industry that employee hiring, and retention are some of the biggest struggles they deal with. We’ve been fortunate in that regard and while we’ve had some issues with finding the right people, we’ve been able to retain most of the people that we really wanted to. In addition to proper compensation packages, we’ve found that employee engagement and managerial flexibility have aided in keeping staff. We strive to maintain an upbeat and positive work environment and feel it has paid off well for us. I expect some challenges in 2023, including the impact of high interest rates on the housing market. Overall, the demand for our products remains strong. We are cautiously optimistic that we can make a good year of it overall with a conservative approach to forward buying and overall stocking levels. s Please turn to page 57 Simple – we handle all the complexities that go into hardwoods to make life easier for you. Natural – we manufacture and supply only sustainable, high-quality products that breathe life into your work. Hardwoods – from harvest to delivery, we set the standard for what the hardwoods experience should be. nwh.com 22 CHRISTMAS 2022 n NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE