For Dan Carriere, furniture means more than just function.
"It's a passion," said the 55-year-old president of Burnaby-based Country Roots
Furniture Inc. "It's creativity, it's making something that creates this flavour,
this wow, that customers want. And that's the excitement in it."
Carriere's enthusiasm has led him on a 27-year career that began in eastern Canada
and currently has him planning yet another expansion for his Burnaby facility.
Country Roots is a wholesale manufacturer of pine, alder and birch products for
clients ranging from resorts to retailers to designers. In addition to its established
product line, it will match custom specifications.
Country Roots focuses solely on North America, with sales driven largely by its
Web site. About two-thirds of its products are shipped to the U.S.
For example, the company's furniture has ended up at various North American resorts
belonging to Intrawest Corp., from Whistler to Las Vegas.
For years, Carriere had a company near St. Catharines, Ontario that manufactured
mid-priced furniture. When the recession hit in the early 1990s, he moved to B.C. After
looking after sales for an office furniture firm, Carriere bought a small North
Vancouver company in 1998 for an undisclosed amount. Along with his team, he's been
building Country Roots ever since. At the beginning, the company had 12 employees.
Now, it has 35 and more are expected.
Country Roots was initially based in North Vancouver, with functions spread across three
buildings. "It was just horrendous," Carriere recalled.
About three years ago, it moved into a 25,000-square-foot facility in Burnaby. It expanded
that space to 40,000 square feet. Now, Country Roots aims to grow again, with plans for an
additional 20,000 square feet by next spring that will include a new shipping and assembling
area. Carriere said up to 20 more employees will be hired.
And he's projecting growing revenues for his profitable firm. Carriere won't provide
exact figures – he acknowledged only that they're in the millions of dollars – but predicts
a 35 per cent increase in sales in 2003 and another 30 per cent increase next year.
Carriere attributes his firm's success to its focus on discriminating buyers that are willing
to pay for high-quality products.
"We treat the furniture industry as a fashion industry," he said, noting that Country Roots
incorporates new colours, designs and textures for its hundreds of products.
He also said he doesn't subscribe to the approach of ramming up volume and lowering prices.
"The volume is never there to make money. You have to make money from day one," he said. "I'd
rather turn down business with low margins than do business, period."
Others acknowledge Country Roots' staying power. "In the pine furniture field, a lot of people
have gone under. [Carriere] has been one of the survivors," said Stephen Harrison, a local
publisher of furniture-related Web sites valuecreatedreview.com and furniturelink.com.
Vancouver purchasing agent Buyer-Brown has acquired Country Roots products on behalf of
Intrawest for a few years, and plans to continue to do so.
"They really come through on their promises and they stand behind their product," said Mark
Friesen, a project manager at Buyer-Brown. "They don't cut corners. They're a good outfit to
work with."
