Celebrating Labor

With Labor Day weekend upon us, it made me think to why we celebrate Labor Day. I googled Labor Day origin and was reminded that the first Labor Day was held on September 5, 1882. Twenty thousand laborers marched in New York City not to celebrate a holiday but for change in the work place. America was in the midst of the Industrial Revolution where manufacturing was king. The work environment was very different than it is today. By 1894, congress passed a bill making the first Monday in September a celebration of Labor Day.


Today we should celebrate every American worker. Unfortunately there are more Americans in service jobs than manufacturing - making things for people to buy. At Hickory Chair we celebrate the 460 individuals who choose to be part of our family. These talented craftsmen continue the spirit of the early laborers that made this rugged country a world power. These talented craftsmen at Hickory Chair make each piece to order. They have bridged the era of bench made products to the Industrial Revolution manufacturing world of making batches of furniture. Our employees have taken the efficiencies of lean manufacturing and have applied them to making one piece at a time. They can make custom pieces in just 14-30 days from order. They have transformed our factory where we make furniture to a workroom where we make one of a kind pieces for people's homes.


Let's give thanks and a cheer to the craftsmen who can carve, sew, cut, sand, assemble, upholster, finish, polish, paint, decorate and every other task needed to make one of a kind pieces. Some may consider all of this labor but we consider it art. Without these talented craftsmen and artisans we could not offer the special pieces made to order. I challenge everyone who has read this post to thank the people who choose to make. They are what America was made of and what will help us restore our country to health and prosperity!

Happy Labor Day everyone!

A New Look for HCC University Alumni News

For some time we have heard from our HCC University participants in the "impressed by sessions" that they were expecting a factory with production lines. They did not expect Hickory Chair's 600,000 square foot factory to have the feel of being a custom workroom! Our employees showed their passion and craftsmanship. They were happy and shared their enthusiasm for our culture of continuous improvement named EDGE Employees Dedicated to Growth and Excellence. They were eager to share their stories of the ideas they had to make their work not so hard, to make the product better quality, to reduce the waste in the process and to make one of a kind pieces to order. They were amazed to see one of a kind pieces being made to order.

We began using the word made instead of manufactured a few years ago. We do not manufacture large production runs. We do make pieces to order. This allows us to personalize pieces for the person's home. We make the vast majority of our wood and upholstered products here in Hickory, North Carolina. We do source some hand carved posts and pieces from long term associates off shore in areas where there are no local sources. We do source metal, glass, stone and our hardware as we do not make these components. But, if we can possibly make it we are determined to keep the work here for our employees. While most manufacturers have been closing plants, we are working hard to build skill, perfect artisanship and remove the waste through recycling, repurposing and and designing the waste out of the product. It is lack of control of these costs that typically causes domestic factories to close. It is a fact that the percentage of pieces made here in Hickory grows each year!

We celebrate the word MADE as it reflects the dedication of 450 employees here in Hickory, North Carolina who hand make furniture to order. It is in celebration of this ability that we have changed the name of HCC University Alumni news to MADE for those who take furniture personally!

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Green Thoughts

A friend read an article over the weekend in the Charlotte Observer newspaper and thought of Hickory Chair. It wasn’t a green article, but the writer, Allen Norwood, made a green statement by saying "that the greenest thing you can buy is one that lasts forever. It never goes to the landfill or has to be recycled." The article focused upon the fact that buying quality made things saves you money because they last. That makes them 'green'.

It made me think about the amazing craftsmen and artisans at Hickory Chair work tirelessly to create heirloom quality pieces with great respect for how the products are made. They carefully select antique pieces whose form and function have transcended time. They interpret the piece as a reproduction or adaptation to make relevant pieces for modern homes. With careful execution of the design and fine craftsmanship the result is heirloom quality since the company began in 1911. Countless pieces have been passed down from one generation to the next. Every day pieces can be found in antique shops, on eBay or Craigs List.

The ease of finding vintage pieces of Hickory Chair mirrors the author's statement "that the greenest thing you can buy is one that lasts forever. It never goes to the landfill or has to be recycled." I am sure that the craftsmen that have spent their careers at Hickory Chair would be proud to know that their hands work has resulted in heirloom quality pieces treasured today and not discarded in a landfill.

A couple of great listings of vintage Hickory Chair on eBay are linked below! The great thing about vintage Hickory Chair pieces is that with their great proportion, classic form and scale, the can complement the new one of a kind pieces that the craftsmen make today at Hickory Chair.

Hickory Chair VIntage Scoop Back Chairs

Hickory Chair Vintage Huntboard