If You Think Our Prices Are Too Low

We know and meet many furnituremakers and other people who know art, craft, design, and furniture well. Seeing that our chairs are priced one-half to one-third less than those of comparable chairs displayed in galleries, juried shows, and specialty catalogs, all are surprised that our prices are so low. Especially as they see that in every comparison: design, function, joinery, workmanship, finish, strength-to-weight, durability, guarantee, delivery, and service — we excel.

How can we excel in quality and lead in price among the best makers in the country? We follow these rules:

• Develop a signature family of techniques that can apply without compromise to all we do.
• Limit and perfect what we do.
• Purchase, modify, or build machines, jigs, and tools to speed, ease, and make safer and more precise all repetitive tasks.
• Use handwork in ways that directly benefit the patron by sculpting, detailing, and finishing — not to overcome imprecision.
• Improve skill.
• Eliminate waste.
• Keep the shop as clean and orderly as a laboratory. (We aren’t benefiting any patron or creating value when we are looking for something.)
• Take care of the little things so the big things can take care of themselves.
• Use the opportunity of building a piece of furniture regularly and often to learn to build it better . . . and faster. (Contrary to intuition, it is not necessary to compromise better to favor faster.)
• Accept only excellence.

Some people think our prices are too high.