International trade has always been a double-edged sword for many American companies. Of the myriad pluses and minuses, access to cheap labor has been both--U.S. firms have benefited from lower manufacturing costs in places like China and Mexico, but American workers have also lost out on jobs. The trend towards foreign production has displaced entire industries that were once firmly rooted in the U.S., from textiles to electronics.

The furniture industry has felt its share of pressure, too, especially in the low- and middle-end markets. "The offshore companies have a tendency to focus on high-volume production, turning out large quantities of inexpensive furniture," says Harry Fraser, CEO of Thos. Moser Cabinetmakers, headquartered in Auburn, Maine. Tom and Mary Moser founded the company 30 years ago, not far from its present location.

While many domestic furniture manufacturers have had to compete with low-cost imports, Thos. Moser has carved out a niche for itself in the high-end market. However, it's not just the company's handcrafted furniture that sets it apart, it's a devotion to craftsmanship, design, service, and even transportation of its product, that gives the company an edge over foreign imports.

"We manufacture the majority of our furniture by hand," Fraser says. "Our designs don't lend themselves to CNC types of equipment or big production equipment. We have to keep on designing furniture that is very hard to build, and this will continue to differentiate our company. Most of the high-volume manufacturers don't look for products that are hard to build; they look for products that are somewhat simpler to build. Our whole philosophy here at Thos. Moser is to celebrate our craft. It's what we do. It's people and wood, not machinery and wood."

The black cherry wood used in Thos. Moser's furniture is harvested from the Allegheny region of western New York and Pennsylvania. "The best cherry in the world is still grown here in the United States," Fraser says. The company also uses ash, as well as other hardwoods such as maple, walnut, or oak, upon the customer's request. At the same time, Thos. Moser remains committed towards sustainable forestry practices, and buys most of its lumber from New Hampshire-based Northland Forest Products, another environmentally conscious company.

"In the past 15 years there hasn't been an interruption in the supply of wood. Cherry trees take a long time to grow, so you get a pretty clear picture in advance of what you're going to get in the year's harvest," Fraser says. "Some are upwards of 100-years-old."

Frontstep's SyteLine ERP software helps Thos. Moser keep the right mix of raw material on hand to meet customers' demands. "We're a build-to-order company. You get a 13-week lead time on furniture you order through any of our five showrooms, and we build it for you," Fraser says.

Although the software works very well for the company's needs now, "we're constantly mapping our way through our processes for our manufacturing, our supply chain, the customer, and the front end of the business. As we continue to do this, we'll need to reevaluate our software," he says. "We're very focused on lean manufacturing here, running a lean enterprise. The software will have to adapt to changes in our operational procedures. We don't want the system to tell us what to do, we want to do what's good for the craft, the customer, and the people here."

Delivery via 'Uncommon' Carrier

Part of Thos. Moser's dedication to service involves the transportation of the furniture from the warehouse to the customer. While this would hardly qualify as anything other than routine for most manufacturers, Thos. Moser sees things differently. "We use Clark & Reid exclusively. It's a high-quality executive moving firm. They deal in a 'white glove' approach to moving, and that's exactly what we need for our furniture," Fraser says. "A number of years back we tried to go the common carrier route, but the amount of damage to our furniture and the customer satisfaction issues that arose made us realize that we should not put our customers in the hands of the common carrier."

The furniture is blanket-wrapped and loaded onto Clark & Reid's trucks. From there, it's transported directly to the customer's door, anywhere in the U.S., explains Clark & Reid's executive vice president, Kevin Rich. The drivers do more than that, though. They'll often move furniture around for the customer to accommodate the new piece, and they'll even take old furniture the customer wants discarded. Furthermore, the drivers train the customer on how to care for and maintain the furniture.

The service also includes removal of boxes and crates, which is another small touch customers really enjoy, Fraser says. "Being up here in Maine, getting rid of a box isn't that much of a problem. But, if you're on the fortieth floor of an apartment building in Manhattan, that's another story."

Ingrained with Craftsmanship

As American companies continue to adapt to new demands in the global marketplace, forcing changes within their organizations which range from small to substantial, Thos. Moser has found success in applying business fundamentals and old-fashioned American work ethics.

Indeed, the company is content to pursue future sales within the U.S.: "I don't think the foreign markets are a part of our strategy right now," Fraser says. "For one, they're fairly volatile. And, we have tremendous market opportunities here in the United States."

Even Tom Peters, co-author of the best selling "In Search of Excellence" and other books on organizational development, was puzzled by the company's unconventional corporate culture. "Tom was here about 12 years ago," Fraser says. "Everyone then was doing quality circles and Six Sigma and the whole nine yards down the quality path. He walked in here and there was no 'quality,' there was no 'inspection.' He asked, 'How come?' The answer was, that if you went to a quilting bee and you started giving them feedback on the quality of what they were doing, you'd be insulting them, because that's the whole purpose of them being there," Fraser says. "He wrote in his newsletter that if you want to see where the industry is trying to get to in terms of quality, then go to Thos. Moser."

Tom Moser, the company's founder, sums it up in one word--provenance: "The origin and history of our furniture is very important to our customers. It becomes part of the value, similar to the valuation of an art object," Moser says. "We are not a commodity product. Our furniture is passed down through generations, and it's meaningful to them that the furniture is made in Maine by craftsmen."

The true test of quality is revealed in company's lifetime guarantee of its furniture. "I wouldn't do that with too many products today," Moser says.

Links

• Thos. Moser Cabinetmakers