Tim Anderson, a Chandler resident, has come a long way since the 1980s when he started working with wood as a teenager. He restored an old dresser in high school and helped his grandpa repair the door on his barn. The first thing he built was a dog house.
Today, he builds things like the custom-made, 12-foot-long, reclaimed wood dining table he made for a client, with matching 10-foot-long benches. Anderson, along with his wife Tanya (who’s a designer), owns WoodworkAZ LLC, a family business located in Gilbert.
Along with custom farmhouse tables, they also build shiplap and plank wall accents and custom barn doors, both sliding and hinged. The barn doors are his favorite to build, he says, because no two are the same.
“Wood wall accents are more of an art piece. Typically, our clients leave that to us, but we encourage and invite their input during construction,” explains Anderson.
All their products are custom-built, and their showroom is their website and Instagram page. However, they always encourage their customers to visit their warehouse.
“There is much to be said about the feel and smell of wood products,” explains Anderson.
They use new hardwoods like alder and poplar, as well as reclaimed wood from barns and pulled from corn cribs (granaries used to dry and store corn) located the east side of the Missouri River.
The process is simple. Clients call, email or walk in to get the ball rolling on a project. Anderson sits down with them and draws up their vision. Once a decision is made, they require a deposit to secure the materials and an installation date. The products are constructed, all the hardware is assembled and then they install or deliver.
“Everyone has different taste and no two builds are ever the same,” says Anderson. “We love to meet our clients before they choose to spend money with us. There is a lot of competition in the Valley market. We separate ourselves by coming to your home or business and always give free estimates.
“We are the busiest barn wood crafters in the Valley,” he says. “We owe that to our referral program. All of our customers who refer someone receive a referral fee. Some customers have paid for their projects in referral fee cash,” he says.
They’ve been so successful that their goal is to open a second shop towards the end of the year.
“There is a night and day difference between custom-built projects and big box store items. But nothing can substitute for quality and service after the sale.”
Woodworking for 30 years hasn’t dampened Anderson’s passion for the smell of fresh-cut wood–and he still does what he loves every day.
Visit WoodworkAZ LLC at 660 N. Neely Street, Ste. #4, Gilbert; at WoodworkAZ.com; or on Facebook and Instagram at woodworkazllc.