EcoTimber Thriving in Down Market for Wood

Richmond, CA, Sept. 2, 2008--EcoTimber, a supplier of environmentally friendly wood flooring, expects to see its sales rise 20 percent this year - even while the overall wood flooring industry is seeing a substantial decline, according to a story in the San Francisco Chronicle.

EcoTimber has the good fortune to be serving the green building market, one of the few parts of the construction industry that continues to grow.

But that good fortune didn't come about easily as the company has had three ownership changes in its 16 years.

Now it is finally benefiting from the growing consumer interest in green products - but also facing competitive challenges because of that tide.

EcoTimber's roots go back to 1992, when several idealists in their 20s decided to open a business selling tropical wood from forests that were not being clear-cut or overlogged.

Their wood often came from obscure species of trees. And their potential buyers in the contracting world had no idea what "sustainable forest" meant.

"People ask for cabinets made out of things like cherry or mahogany," Jason Grant, an EcoTimber co-founder who left the company in 2000 and today is a consultant on sustainable forest products, told the Chronicle.

"No one asks to make something out of mersawa from New Guinea or chakte kok from Mexico. People couldn't pronounce these, much less order them."

The groundwork for change was laid in 1993 with the creation of the Forest Stewardship Council.

EcoTimber was one of the first vendors of certified wood. But the early years were tough.

Grant and his partners eventually sold EcoTimber to a lumber firm, which later sold it to two private-equity firms - one of which, Greenmont Capital Partners, focuses on the organic and green product sector.

Along the way, EcoTimber opted to halt direct sales to consumers and instead sell through dealers. It also made the key decision to get out of general lumber sales and specialize in flooring.

The other key factor behind EcoTimber's success is the growth of the green building movement, spearheaded by the nonprofit U.S. Green Building Council.

Builders can get points toward a LEED rating by using wood with a Forest Stewardship Council seal - which fueled demand for EcoTimber's wares.

EcoTimber's sales have grown from $800,000 in 2003 to a projected $8 million in 2008, the Chronicle said.

Today, the company sells 24 varieties of hardwood and six kinds of bamboo flooring. All its hardwood is 100 percent FSC-certified, unlike some suppliers that use a conventional wood veneer over a certified backing. EcoTimber's flooring is also made without added urea formaldehyde, a carcinogen common in composite wood products.