The company purchases
The company purchases approximately 10 million board feet of domestic and imported Hardwoods annually. Peach State Lumber Products Customer Service Is Priority At Peach State Lumber Products By Michelle Keller Kennesaw, GA—Distribution/concentration yard Peach State Lumber Products, located here, specializes in high-grade domestic and imported Hardwoods, plywoods, softwoods, veneers and turning blocks. The company purchases approximately 10 million board feet annually. Primarily serving the Southeast region, Bert Scarbrough said while the company carries everything from Ash to Zebrawood, availability changes with design trends. “We service architectural millwork, flooring, and stair manufacturers and a variety of high-end contractors and retailers,” he explained. “Those markets change with design trends and we accommodate those needs. We offer what our customers need and our diverse product line gives a huge advantage.” Peach State stocks Hardwoods in thicknesses from 4/4 to 16/4 Face, Select and Better and inventories about 2 million board feet. Scarbrough said customer service is a priority at Peach State Lumber Products. “Being a family operated business we A family operated business, this ‘Peach’ welcomes customers to Peach State Lumber. can adjust to our customers’ needs. We handle 99 percent of our own shipments. The reason we do that is because it’s easier and more efficient if you handle your own trucks. It gives you an advantage because you may talk to the customer on the phone but your driver is as much of a contact as the sales person.” With a turn-around time of ‘next-day’ service, Scarbrough said the company also offers straight line ripping and surfacing. “We do a lot of specialty sorts for length, width and color. A lot of our orders have grown because we do offer those specialty sorts and services.” Offering those key services is an imperative part of the operation. Scarbrough said, “When a customer can call you at two in the afternoon and you can deliver a pulled for length and 18 JUNE 2014 ■ NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE
Peach State’s lobby showcases their customers’ talents. It features a Hardwood floor with quarter-sawn White Oak, Wenge, Purpleheart, and Jatoba. width order with plywood and hardware and have it to them by the next day, you build a good reputation and repeat business.” When asked about the things that continue to contribute to the success of Peach State Lumber, he credited an incredible staff and progressive equipment. “You can’t offer quality customer service without the personnel to back it,” he said. “Our Newman Whitney planer offers a really good planing surface and has been a huge point for us. The lumber industry has changed in the last few years and people have become very specific in what they request. All of our orders are checked three times before they leave our door. You have to stay on your toes and you have to have employees that understand what they do.” Offering products from one of a kind slab boards to Appalachian species, Peach State Lumber Products gets a lot of requests. “Our products have gone into some very interesting places. From a distributor side one of the highlights of the job is getting to see the finished product. We’ve had orders for specialty products that are anywhere from 20 feet long Cypress beams all the way to 20/4 FAS Walnut that we shipped to New Jersey. There is no item that our customer Distribution/concentration yard Peach State Lumber Products, Kennesaw, GA, specializes in high-grade domestic and imported Hardwoods, plywoods, softwoods, veneers and turning blocks. base won’t call and ask for. Our customers are able to select their own lumber from bundles or they can pick through the surfaced lumber available.” Customers are assisted by an educated staff with color and width choices from assorted Select and Better lumber widths. Utilizing Agility from DMSi Software for managing inventory and accounting has increased efficiency and productivity, according to Dan Cox, CFO, managing duties as diverse as the inventory. “We're better able to serve customers by eliminating errors. We provide tallies for all shipments and have Please turn to page 40 JUNE 2014 ■ NATIONAL HARDWOOD MAGAZINE 19
