This week many from our indoor furniture team (a.k.a. the store team) went to visit some of the shops that build our handcrafted custom furniture. The 16 that went included sales, warehouse, delivery, and marketing crews, and the education, hospitality and team development we had over those two days was something special! We are still talking about it!
We visited nine shops in total. While each had its own production system, they all shared common procedures. We found there was always a section that housed the raw, solid hardwood materials.
We got to witness firsthand how the furniture is cut, sanded, assembled, resanded and built to the highest standards.
It was exceptionally impressive to watch the attention to detail a craftsman gives to each piece as he or she builds the furniture one at a time. That’s why we truly mean it when we boast our furniture is handcrafted and Benchmade!
It was great to get training on the features of the furniture and how these details set our furniture apart when it comes to quality and excellence.
As we toured the facilities, we enjoyed seeing the pieces before they went into the finish shop.
Finally, we loved seeing the beauty of the finished furniture, packaged and ready for delivery. We could walk around admiring all the unique ideas, you, our customers, had designed and ordered!
Many of the guys were enthralled by the equipment that is used 🙂
A CNC machine at one of the shops.
Everyone was excited to see the piece pictured above in production. It’s something new we custom designed and will be coming to our showroom soon!
Dave gave a detailed explanation on this new product line and how easy it will be to customize.
The dialogue with the vendors was valued on both ends! We got to see some of their new products, give them on-the-spot feedback on design and functionality, and see our ideas get noted and changed.
The warm welcome and hospitality we felt during those two days was overwhelming. We sincerely appreciated our vendors, taking time out of their busy days to give us tours and spend some time together. We were even spoiled with these beautiful thank you gifts!
We were privileged with beautiful accommodations and an abundance of delicious dinners!
Everything about the trip went like clockwork. That is, until the last few hours. Before heading to the airport, the battery on our bus died. Thankfully a number of people from the community jumped in to help us out, and we got going only a few minutes behind schedule. When we arrived at the airport we were told our airplane had mechanical problems and we wouldn’t be able to make our connecting flight. We were stuck. And there was nothing we could do about it. What I say next isn’t for bragging reasons. I write it because I love this team and how we work together. Instead of getting discouraged, we made lots of phone calls and shifted gears. It was truly one of those “team” moments. Because of the circumstances we extra time together and we enjoyed each other’s company. I would also like to give a HUGE shout-out to our team back in Ellington. They quickly pulled together, filled in roles they don’t do normally, and as an entire collective team, we pulled together seamlessly. In the end, twelve hours after what we had initially planned, we all arrived safely back on location.
If I can speak for the team, the experience was excellent. The time we shared together, talking, discussing, analyzing, giving feedback, learning, and so on was tremendous. While we learn about our products when they come on the showroom floor, to understand the details, construction and beauty of the pieces inside and out, helps us as a team share the inspiring story of how our furniture’s remarkable craftsmanhip. Our goal is to bring you the best, and after seeing everything from raw materials to finished pieces, we are confident we do.
