CROSBY -- It may not be a better mousetrap, but a Crosby cabinet maker has a patent pending on a custom cabinet door that is capturing business growth.
"I knew once I had this done it was going to be something good," said Dave Schmidt, owner of C-I Cabinets in Crosby.
Schmidt is featured in a March specialty issue of Log Home Design Ideas that focuses on kitchens and baths. Schmidt, a third generation cabinet maker, created a cabinet door made of custom milled half log. Called the Frontier line, the custom cabinets were made to accommodate the interior of log homes or any rustic decor.
Creating something from wood was in Schmidt's system early on. Schmidt's father and grandfather were cabinet makers. And his brothers are also in construction.
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Dave Schmidt, C-I Cabinets of Crosby, works in the family business' small workshop. With a patent pending on a cabinet design and a new, larger shop planned, the small business is part of a growing lakes economy and building boom. (Dispatch Photo by Renee Richardson)
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"I kind of grew up with it," he said.
Getting the word out about the half log cabinets took awhile, but Schmidt said he had faith once log builders heard about it they would be interested. Now the small business, which has a new Web site and a national listing in a trade publication, has customers as far away as Arizona. The kitchen for the Arizona client is the first sale outside Minnesota. And it reflects the growth curve of a business that formerly ran solely on word of mouth.
"It's like, wow this is great, that's what makes it exciting," Schmidt said of the Arizona sale. Calls have come from North Carolina, Michigan and California.
Schmidt and his wife, Barb, have been operating their business in Crosby by themselves for about four years. In January, the couple hired an additional employee to keep up with a steady work load. The business is also assisted by the area building boom and construction of $200,000 houses in areas like Crosslake. Other area customers include the Russell and Herder advertising and public relations agency based in Brainerd and The River Nith Coffee and Books in the Westgate Mall in Brainerd/Baxter.
"So it's been really exciting as far as it taking off," Barb Schmidt said.
Long distance customers typically send drawings of their kitchen plans; measurements are taken and verified with the assistance of computers and fax machines. Once the numbers are checked and rechecked to make sure the cabinets will fit in the kitchen space, the kitchen design is completed and shipped.
Some customers have the exact plan in mind. Others have a concept or two to build upon. Barb Schmidt said a key in planning is to identify the key priorities for the customer. If the counter top color and type is the priority, that identification helps in the budget process.
Many homeowners are also looking for custom designs to set their homes apart. The individual design can even come down to drawer pulls, or handles, or incorporating a piece of family history. Other typical design elements include roll-out drawers, tip-out trays, lazy Susans, trash compactors, built-in ovens, ranges and cook tops. Many of the Schmidts' customers are more than 50 years old and are creating homes to last into their retirement years.
Kitchens can include a cost range from $5,000 to $30,000. Dave Schmidt said the business averages about four kitchens a month for average projects. A $30,000 kitchen may take a month's time by itself.
Where the business can grow in the future is now the unknown, making it a mix of excitement and trepidation. "We have no idea," Barb Schmidt said. "Even the last six months has been sort of a leap for us.
"... You can't really afford to grow too much too fast."
Another new experience was having to turn down 10 kitchens in January alone. For a small business, having the confidence to say no to projects has been part of the growth curve.
Barb Schmidt said: "Maybe that's part of the maturing process we've gone through in the past few months." She noted some customers are waiting to book time until late summer. "For a little shop that means a lot."
From making everything from wine racks to fireplace mantles and tables, Dave Schmidt expects the future to be all about the kitchen cabinets. Plans also call for construction of a new 5,000-square-foot shop, showroom and office right on Highway 210, near the business' current location.
"We want to keep it small and personalized," Dave Schmidt said. When the couple first decided to relocate to the area from Becker, it was an unknown how well the business would do in the economy. But the Schmidts wanted a small-town atmosphere for their 7-year-old son. And lack of work in the growing lakes region was not an obstacle.
Dave Schmidt said: "There is so much work up here it is unimaginable."
