OFFICE: (901) 522-9663
Classic American Hardwoods
Our Mission
The mission of Classic American Hardwoods is to enrich the lives of its employees, customers, and vendors by responsibly purchasing, manufacturing, and marketing hardwood lumber products; our world's only renewable natural resource.
Our History
Started in president and founder Bill Courtney's living room in 2001, Classic American Hardwoods, Inc. has become one of the most respected and recognized hardwood lumber companies in the world. We take and adhere to a forward thinking, customer-oriented approach to hardwood lumber production, sales, and service. It is this attitude, paired with our willingness to meet customer specifications and sorts, that has grown our sales to over $50,000,000 USD annually.
Our foundation began on an old, industrial parcel of 17 abandoned acres in North Memphis, Tennessee. Today, Classic American Hardwoods now encompasses a 43-acre facility and employs 120 people. From our meager 2001 beginnings servicing customers in just a handful of U.S. states, we exported our first load of lumber to China in 2006. In 2007 we opened our first overseas office in Shanghai, China, and shortly thereafter in 2008, we ventured to open an additional overseas office in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. These expansions have led to our active customer service in 39 U.S. states, and 27 countries.
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Operationally, we have grown to meet the demands of our expanding customer base. In 2010 we built 360,000bf (board-feet) of new dry-kiln space, bringing our total dry-kiln capacity to 1,000,025bf. During our dry kiln expansion, we updated our boilers to meet all new EPA standards, updated the electronic control and conditioning processes of our existing kilns, added a third kiln-dried lumber production line, and cleared ground for our brand new, state-of-the-art, automated and optimized LICO merchandising production line.
Classic American Hardwoods’ mere 19-year existence in a centuries-old industry is rich with innovation, growth, and most importantly, customer satisfaction. Because we refuse to be bound by traditionally perceived restrictions of the national hardwood lumber industry, we have been able to outperform our competition by meeting our customers' ever-changing needs and specifications. We look forward to ongoing business with our current customers and partners while seeking novel growth and development for new relationships around the globe.
Letter from the President
In September of 2001, the dream of Classic American Hardwoods, Inc. became a reality. The myriad of people to whom we owe a ‘Thank You,’ including customers, vendors, and employees, are too numerous to individually address. Suffice it to say, though, we at CAH know where we came from, who helped us get here, and how fortunate we are to have the plethora of remarkable relationships we have today. The number one prevailing lesson we have learned over the last 19 years is that, much like hardwoods themselves, no company is perfect. Because of this, we understand that it is crucial to remain committed to the goal of perfection. While we recognize that there is no finish line in this particular race, we fearlessly chase the task by staying committed to our three-step approach.
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First, and absolutely foremost, we are committed to service. We recognize that our customers need fair prices and quality products. There are many hardwood lumber producers in the world that can provide fair prices and quality products, but the way we differentiate ourselves from the rest of the pack is how we handle our customers. We are dedicated to doing what we say we are going to do - period! Ship dates are not an estimate at CAH, they are an absolute. Further, our customers' special needs are a welcome priority, rather than an inconvenience, which is why CAH personnel are committed to you 24 hours a day, 7 day a week. Your contact at Classic American Hardwoods is never closed for business. Your problem is our problem, and our solution is your solution. At CAH, we know who pays our bills and we plan to keep them happy.
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Secondly, we are committed to our employees. We are not an old, fourth generation company who expects the industry to treat us as if we have a place at the emperor's table. We are quite the opposite. Classic American Hardwoods is owned and operated by hard working people who share a common dream of creating something new and different in an old, established industry. This dream requires good people willing to work very hard together, and at CAH, that is exactly what you find. There is no such thing as "That's not my job," or "I'll get to that tomorrow." To achieve this attitude and teamwork, the mentality must start at the top. At CAH, there is not a manager who will instruct any employee to do what they have not already done themselves in the past, or do not stand ready to do again. Classic American Hardwoods strives to elevate all employees by sharing our good fortunes with those who have helped the good fortunes to happen. Therefore, every CAH employee realizes that whatever is good for the company is ultimately good for them.
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Finally, we are committed to our resource. At CAH, we feel that the utmost importance to us is defending our right to operate freely. Our resource is not only the timber base we harvest our goods from, it is the industry that we operate in. Our marketplace and industry foes, such as intrusive governments, fraud, and environmentally misinformed people, are best combated with the simple and honest truth. The truth is that our resource, hardwood lumber, is the only renewable natural resource in the world. Our industry solely exists because of this resource – we are the last ones that would ever destroy it. At CAH we are committed to this message and will expose the detractors that fair to profit from silencing it.
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In summary, we are a dedicated company with committed people who are serious about our resource, our employees, and most importantly, our customers. Our goal is to earn your business one load at a time whether you are an established customer, or if you are giving us your first order. While there is no finish line, we always strive to lead the race.
With Undying Resolve,
Bill Courtney
President, CEO