Colorado Companies to Watch spotlight: Rustic Log Furniture

ColoradoBiz Staff //July 26, 2012//

Colorado Companies to Watch spotlight: Rustic Log Furniture

ColoradoBiz Staff //July 26, 2012//

www.rusticlogfurniture.com

Snapshot: Alamosa-based Rustic Log Furniture manufactures log furniture products using dead standing aspen from the Rocky Mountain forests and distributes them to retail stores across the country.

Leadership: Randy Jackson has been president since the company’s founding in 1996.

Work force: Rustic Log furniture ended 2011 with 35 full-time-equivalent employees, a 71 percent increase over the previous year. It expects to employ 45 this year.

Pivotal moment: When Rustic Log outgrew its manufacturing location, the company leased adjoining property that had more acreage and highway frontage. Walk-in traffic surged as a result.

Technological edge: Rustic Log Furniture is connected with most of its suppliers for virtual automation of the inventory-ordering processes. The invoice software is linked to the factory’s batch processing reports that export piece lists for the various work stations. Machinists used by Rustic Log have developed new equipment and modified existing equipment to optimize various processes.

Competitive Edge: Rustic Log Furniture has developed, streamlined and automated processes to deal with the irregular nature of log furniture. Its product line is the most extensive in the industry, according to the company. Competitive advantages it has realized from collaborating with suppliers and distribution networks have allowed it to price products 10 percent to 20 percent below the competition.

Growth curve: The company’s revenues soared 34 percent in 2011 over the previous year, and it is projecting a 20 percent gain this year.