APRIL MORSE'S STRUGGLING FAMILY BUSINESS APPEARS ON NATE BERKUS SHOW TO DISCUSS HOW BLOGGING LANDED WILLIAMS-SONOMA AS A CUSTOMER
LODI, CA — A financially troubled family business gained a big customer when it came up with a new, innovative use for its scrap material. That product landed on the shelves of Williams-Sonoma’s stores two months ago, and its creator will make a guest appearance on the Nate Berkus Show on Thursday, October 7, 2010.
"What an experience to be on the Nate Berkus show!" April Morse of Weber's Cabinets said. "He is truly a genuine person who wants to support people and I am so grateful for him to have me on his show."
April Morse of family-owned Weber's Cabinets of Lodi, Calif., decided to use the struggling company’s abundant wood scraps to fashion a cutting board in the shape of a wine bottle. She starting selling the boards from their cabinet shop and hoped to sell to local wine shops and vineyards. Then taking the advice of a friend, she submit her creation to Williams-Sonoma, hoping they might be interested in the custom-made kitchen décor.
In a fraction of the time it usually takes to get noticed by such a large retailer, April had a contract to supply the custom wine bottle cutting boards to Williams-Sonoma, providing her family’s business with a substantial financial boost. Her achievement also improved the local economy – April has hired five new employees to help meet the demand for her cutting boards.
What was the secret to April's success? She blogged about it on Custom Cabinet Girl (www.customcabinetgirl.com). She had mentioned on her blog, which was at the time "read by about nine people," that she submitted to Williams-Sonoma and was waiting to hear back from them. Within a week she received a call from the president of Williams-Sonoma. He got notice of her blog post from a Google alert, liked her product and wanted to start stocking it immediately.
Currently 25 Williams-Sonoma retail stores are carrying the wine bottle shaped chopping block and just this week the product was added to their Web site in anticipation of the Nate Berkus show. Williams-Sonoma has ordered 2,300 since they began selling the product in September.
"For Weber’s Cabinets to be able to make a quality handmade product for Williams-Sonoma is truly a dream come true, " April said. "Williams-Sonoma really enjoys working with artisans and craftsman that create a handmade product in the United States. Their dedication to helping us succeed is really extraordinary."
Weber's Cabinets sells the wine bottle shaped cutting boards and a heart shaped cutting board on their web site http://www.weberscabinets.com
ABOUT WEBER’S CABINETS
Weber's Cabinets, Inc. is a family-owned cabinet company located in Lodi, California. We have been in business since 1972 and take pride in building a quality cabinet that can last a generation. We specialize in custom cabinetry like entertainment centers, kitchens, bathroom vanities, home offices, and much more. We also build decorative chopping blocks, and butcher blocks currently for sale on our website and at Williams-Sonoma stores throughout the country.
We are truly a custom cabinet maker because we produce all of our cabinets and blocks right here in our Lodi shop. We have an adjoining building which is where we finish all of our own cabinetry before it is installed.
Mark Weber started the business in 1972. Mark's daughter, April Morse started working with her dad in 2001.
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If you’d like more information about this topic, or to schedule an interview with April Morse, email April at april@weberscabinets.com or call her at (209) 810-3851