John Dupre: Revel Woods

While pursuing a stitch fix-esque site one day, John Dupre was inspired while being led through the site questions heading down the path to his dream wardrobe. His inspiration turned into action as he realized that this sales model was exactly what the wood flooring business needed. Instantly running to the drawing board, John and his team tweaked, built, and re-built a similar algorithm specifically focused on wood flooring customers.


While Revel Woods sells directly to consumers, they also know that the wood flooring business rarely has more than 1-2 return customers within a lifetime. This is why, once they had perfected the above sales tool,  they decided to focus on explaining its purpose, use, and algorithm to interior designers. With their experience in the field, interior designers instantly saw the problem that Revel Woods was solving with this tool and quickly became return customers.

A company committed to only providing the best…

  • John’s father started his wood flooring business when John was very young. So, you could say wood flooring runs fairly thick through his veins!
  • On the high-end of quality and product, Revel Wood is much more focused on curation than mass production.
  • They choose to work with those that understand the long-term investment of their product. Wood flooring is an investment that will last for generations and quite possibly outlive their initial purchasers.
  • “Hardwood flooring is the only type of wood that will spend more time as a product than it will as a tree.” – John Dupree

How they are sourcing their product…

  • While John’s father was starting the business, he became involved with the NWFA – a group that is essentially the governing body of the wood flooring association. John himself now sits on the board as well.
  • The AFA helps connect Revel Woods to all sorts of suppliers. These suppliers range from small business sawmills to Canadian run lumber yards.
  • The Duprees visit these mills and lumberyards frequently and have developed personal relationships with various mill owners through the years.
  • Where the product is sourced, how the wood is harvested, and even the glue that is used is taken into account before Revel Woods even begins to consider purchasing through a new supplier.

www.revelwoods.com
Instagram: @revelwoods
Facebook @revelwoods

What exactly is a Woodpreneur?

So, why the term “woodpreneur”? When Steve first started Acres of Timber three years ago, the wood community and industry wasn’t what it is now.

Slab dealers, wood designers, and more specifically at the time – sawmill users, didn’t have a community or a brand and were going largely unnoticed by potential customers who would look instead to the Home Depot and Lowe’s of this world for their products. Steve sought to change that by creating the Sawmill Business Instagram account and the #sawmillbusiness hashtag as a way to share the products and creations that these innovative makers were producing. It didn’t take long for the account to grow to over 136,000 followers, and with a hashtag that has been used over 35,000 times, the Sawmill Business community grew and grew quickly!

As the Sawmill Business following grew, Steve began to notice that this community didn’t just include sawmill owners. Furniture designers, woodworkers, arborists, tree climbers, chainsaw users, slab sellers, and even treehouse makers became an integral part of the Sawmill Business family as well. It was at this point that Steve knew the business needed a new name that would truly encompass all that the wood community represents. Hence, @acresoftimber and the term “Woodprener” were born.

With the maker movement now in full swing, there are more podcasts, content creators (like Anne of All Trades), YouTubers, and makers (such as Matt Cremona), that are putting a spotlight on sawmill users, furniture makers, and other wood related niches. Not only has the wood community turned into a “maker movement”, it’s also filled with people who now view the work that they do as a profitable business and not just a hobby, a perception that was lacking without a community behind it.

A “Woodpreneur” Is A…

  • Sawmill User
  • Wood Business Owner
  • Furniture Designer
  • Hardwood Flooring Professional
  • Woodworker
  • Slab Dealer
  • Kiln User
  • Welder
  • Content Creator
  • Maker

And an overall innovative, brave, and creative entrepreneur in the wood industry!
“Woodpreneurs care about building their business as much as they care about the quality of the products they make, create, and sell. They don’t just want a job, they want a company. They invest in this company with blood, sweat, and tears and love every minute of it.”

Follow us on Instagram!! @acresoftimber

Want more?

Join our private Facebook Group and get access to our FREE marketing hacks course for Woodpreneurs! ?CLICK HERE TO JOIN
Listen to more episodes of the Woodpreneur Podcast at: ?https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/sawmill-business
Read our Free Instagram Report:? “Tools for how to turn leads into sales, grow your following, and easily create engaging content.”
Are you ready to scale your woodworking, flooring, or tree service business?

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