There seems to be a gap between the way timber is usually sold and the way many of us actually buy it.
Merchants are often set up to handle timber in packs and larger quantities. That makes sense for the trade, but it can be difficult when you’re making something at home or in a small workshop and only need a few suitable boards.
I understand that frustration as a maker. Sometimes you know roughly what you need, but finding the right species, size and quality—in a sensible quantity—isn’t straightforward. You can end up buying more than you need or making do with timber that isn’t quite right for the project.
Since setting up Hawksbury Timber, I’ve started to understand the other side of this a little better too. It isn’t that merchants are being unhelpful. Their businesses simply aren’t always set up around smaller, individual projects.
I’m not pretending to have solved that gap, and this isn’t something I’ve been doing for years. But it is something I’d like Hawksbury Timber to help with: listening to what someone is making, helping them work out what they need and, where I can, helping them find the right boards without having to buy a whole pack.
That feels like a useful place to start.