Once a year, builders from wood shops in northern Indiana drive down to Tulsa to Amish Crafted Furniture’s showroom. They stand amongst furniture made with their own hands and meet the people who take it home.
This Meet the Craftsmen event now in its eighteenth year, is happening once again on September 11 and 12. For those two days, the men who cut the joinery will be working the floor.
"The biggest thing is our customers meeting some of the builders that make our furniture," says co-owner Nick Yoder. "If it's a bedroom set, they'll be able to meet the actual guys who make it."
There is no podium, no demonstration schedule. "It's one-on-one conversations," Nick says. "We'll be able to direct clients to the correct craftsman for the set that they're looking at." Every shop has a specialty: Schwartz Woodworking for bedrooms, West Point Woodworking for dining tables, Artisan Chairs for seating, and Forks Valley Woodworking for everything from occasional pieces to TV stands and office furniture.
Custom requests that usually travel by email, one question at a time, get settled in a single conversation. "The craftsman can make it come to life," Nick says. "They can say, well, we can do this, but if we do that, then we're going to have to change this." The quote arrives just as fast. "They'll just come up with a price right there for something off-the-wall or custom." As Nick puts it, "It's really bringing design and craftsmanship together."
That kind of ease only comes from familiarity. Most of their builders have supplied the store since it opened in 2006, several now on their third generation. The relationships never stayed on paper. "We regularly go up there to their wood shops and see their operations," Nick says. "We go to their houses and have dinner with their families. It's a very close relationship."
For the builders, the event is a special experience as well. After a year at the bench, the builders spend two days shaking hands with the families who will make that work part of their homes. It is a great reminder of why they do it. "Actually coming to see the faces of the customers that are so excited about their product, that's a really special thing," Nick says. This year, Artisan Chairs makes the trip for the first time.
Longtime clients treat the weekend as a standing appointment. "They're okay with waiting months out because they know they're going to talk to the builders," Nick says. Others find out at the door, including customers who drive down from neighboring states. "They come in sometimes not even knowing about the event," Nick says, "and then they meet the guys who actually made it. It’s a really neat thing to see."
Customers also arrive with an idea of the Amish that does not survive the introduction. "They have all this mystique built up in their mind, and then they come in and meet these just normal people who are just like you and I, and they're funny and they're fun to be around," says Nick, who grew up Amish. The builders, he says, are "just out there building good American-made furniture the old way."
Everything is 10% off both days, showroom pieces and special orders alike, with custom work running ten to twelve weeks. Pre-orders open a week early for anyone who cannot make it in.