Ed
By specialty paneling do you mean you will be making and selling plywood? There is demand for the services you mention, but I don't know how much. Since you are angling for the smaller personal service business model I think your success hinges on advertsising and building a client base. How big do you think the market is in your area? Birmingham or Huntsville has the population needed to build a business like you described but what about your area? Is it a good market for high end homes that incorporate custom millwork, high end trim and cabinetry, and architectural design? Are there custom cabinet shops that you could do business on a steady basis with to provide a consistent source of sales? Local hobby woodworkers would very much appreciate such a business but there aren't enough of those folks around to build a business on I think, unless you go the internet and shipping route. You won't be going to big suppliers and submitting bids, instead you'll have to take on small jobs and deal with the public who can be fickle and run you to death for a small sale.
Have you ever been to Hardwoods Inc. in Scottsboro? The owners there seem to be doing quite well and growing. It might be worth your while to take a look at their operation to get ideas. They provide hardwood plywood, kiln dried rough and S4S harwood, softwood, and exotics plus a lot of millwork such as crown, stair parts, etc., in addition to flooring. They may be a bigger outfit than what you are initially envisioning but they started out small and seem to have figured out how to be succesful in a small local market.
You might find it interesting that I just got back from a lumber run. Several weeks ago I got turned on to a place in Cullman that sells reclaimed lumber. They're called Southern Accents Architectural Antiques. Their business is taking all the old wood, millwork, doors, hardware, etc. from old homes, barns, hotels, offices, etc. that is being torn down and resale the "good stuff" to the public and even ship overseas. I've bought around 100 bd feet of old growth white oak in the past two weeks for a shop project I'm working on. I love going there because the owner turns me loose in the warehouse and lets me pick whatever I want. They have rough sawn and planed in evey size imaginable, 1 bys to beams. Heart pine, oak, walnut, poplar, cherry, etc. they have it. They also have about 1000 old doors and countless mantles in stock that you can buy as is or they will refinish for a fee. What I'm getting at here is they provide many services to their customers. That is why I think they are doing well. Well that and the fact they buy stuff that is going to go to the land fill and sell it for a tidy profit, e.g. glass door knobs with brass back plates go for over $100. I've been paying $3.50 a bd ft. for old growth white oak that has been denailed in sizes from 2x6 to 6x8 and I resaw them to get quartersawn. The point is they offer a big selection and I can find something that meets my needs and priced very competitively
You also may recall a few weeks ago I had a portable sawmill come to my street and cut up a bunch of red oak and cherry for me. That was a great service and I have a nice pile of lumber for future projects.
What this long winded post is try to convey is yes, there are folks out there, like me, who would like and appreciate a business like the one you described and the more services you can offer the more potential for customers repeat business. I don't think you can go high production in just sawing and make it. I think you will need a broader approach that includes things like custom sawing, kiln drying, planing, a large inventory for folks to poke around with as many species as you can get your hands on, no minimum order. I think you will need to offer end products like custom flooring for those folks that don't want Armstrong pre finished floors in their custon homes. I think you will want to have something for the guy that just wants a few select pieces for a small project. I think you will want to easily handle a large order to a cabinet shop with a short lead and turnaround time. I think you will want the capability to do custom millwork and set up displays of your work and get the interior decorators to start bringing their clients to your place of business. Overall what I see is a place of business that supplies to hobbyists, cabinet shops, and a place where folks can come to pick things to decorate their homes. The latter being where I think you will have the greatest opportunity.
I hope this meandering post is of some benefit or give you an idea or two. I'd love to see you make a go of it and would definitely make a trip down there to buy from you.
