Sugar Wood: Making art work with networks
by MacKenzie Rawcliffe
The idea of networking as a way to increase individual economic power and enhance development is catching on in areas all over the state from service providers to traditional artisans. But it is often hard to get a network to reach its full potential and effectiveness, even with the advantages that lighting fast communication technology gives us. This makes many would be network organizers wonder: how can you make a network…work?
In the western mountains of Maine there are majestic hills, peaceful pastures, winding rivers and most importantly deep rich woods. For centuries the residents of western Maine have drawn from the natural resources of the forest to support themselves, but in recent years a sense of stagnation and hopelessness for the future has slipped into the psych of the local industry. In response to this, local wood workers have begun to work together towards a more profitable and sustainable future. With the help of a national conservation group The Wilderness Society, they formed Maine WoodNet and have worked under the skillful direction of Chris Krauss to try and reshape the way producers and consumers look at the wood industry.
Based in Farmington Maine, WoodNet is a membership organization that “spans the forest products value chain from the forest to the shop to the showroom.” The WoodNet provides members assistance in 6 areas: marketing, technical, organizing trade-shows, education in wood use efficiency, offering forest products certification and retail merchandising (through SugarWood Gallery). They use education, group marketing and networking to approach the future of the Maine wood industry in a holistic way. They want to promote “communities (that) celebrate the creation of wood products within an environment that encourages the conservation of natural resources and values the spiritual, cultural, and community life in the region.”
WoodNet was funded by the Wilderness Society when an economist there was unable to find an organization in the area able or willing to work on a new approach to the wood industry. The idea was that for a project to be successful both the well-being of the environment and the people in it needed to be taken into account. This idea of putting the economic future of the people on the same level of importance as the health of environment leads to solutions that are more sustainable. They consulted Deborah Bird president of the Western Mountain Alliance on who to hire to head up the project. She suggested Krauss, who had no experience in non profits but had worked for then Senator John Baldacci and was known as a woman who ‘got things done’. Once she was brought on board Krauss did indeed get things done, creating a network that goes beyond paper plans and into everyday sharing or resources, education, and cooperative business.
How did she do this? Given little guidance by her employers she simply started calling woodworkers, from the smalltime carvers to the loggers cutting down the trees. She soon realized that although she was hired to build a market for high end niche products she really needed to work with the producers on their business skills. From refining their products down to designing the product hang tags, she saw that to focus on business development and ignore developing the entrepreneur would not improve the situation. She sat down with each member to talk about their product, from the design to refining their skills. Keeping in contact with all her members was a challenge especially since some are proudly “off-line”. Making the personal connections and building her communication network took a few years but now the network is built on a solid base of ‘soft’ personal connections. You can see the strength of these connections in the way that members share tools, collaborate on projects and give their scrap wood to members that produce smaller products. It was this network that made it easy for Krauss to get members to put money on the table at a last minute meeting to make a down payment for a storefront that had recently gone on sale. This became the SugarWood gallery, the owners hope that through this store, entirely owned and run by WoodNet members, they will be able to not only increase revenue but improve their standard of living and the profile of their local community. So far they have been hugely successful, expanding from one storefront to three. A large part of this has been SugarWood’s focus on enticing the local market. When construction was still going on the windows were covered with butcher paper that said “Don’t Peek!” naturally causing a lot of curious interest around town. They have created a cohesive SugarWood “brand” by mixing products by different artists together in pleasing retail displays and including the personal stories of the artists with the products. Producers of the larger products make most of profits but gallery owners stress the importance of the smaller products because they keep the gallery fresh and interesting as well as give each person that enters the gallery something they can afford. The gallery owner’s biggest surprise was when they tracked the zip codes of their customers and realized that 60% of their sales came from within a 42 mile radius. That contradicts the common idea that high end products can only be supported by attracting wealthy patrons from out of state.
Members credit Krauss’s leadership qualities for much of WoodNet’s success. Citing her enthusiasm and persistence, one member said “Let’s be honest. The wood products industry here is really fragile. It’s really easy to feel like there is no hope, that you’re constantly threatened. Chris has this optimism, an enthusiastic ‘can-do’ attitude. That is rare, but it has been absolutely essential for MWN.” Krauss also has a strong network of connections both in the industry and state government that has really helped Maine WoodNet do more than talk. “There is no doubt about her ability to get on the phone or meet with just about anyone. We all benefit from those connections. That is how you make things happen. She is able to connect people within MWN with people and resources outside of MWN. Living in a region that is so isolated, we needed a leader who could organize and move forward using those connections.” said one member. Other members praise Krauss for her entrepreneurial spirit, ability to inspire members and her skill at getting past the bureaucracy to get things done. “Chris has jumped in and (has) taught herself as she’s gone along. She is leading by example in this regard. When she sets a standard of saying she doesn’t know something, then asks questions, others follow that lead.”
Sandy Maxey, a Wilderness Society Consultant that has recently completed an evaluation of the program attributes WoodNet’s success to the way it builds on the strengths of the region in a holistic way, rather than looking at one aspect and expecting other things to fall into place. Maxey commends the project for tapping the brain power already in the community and constantly encouraging the self development of its members. Seeing opportunities and being flexible and nimble enough to take advantage of them were also key contributors to WoodNet’s success according to Maxey, but most important was a resolve to never give up and be patient. “When you are persistent, and organized anything is possible” says Maxey.
For more information see their website at www.mainewoodnet.org/swg_about.htm