Do you sneer, when you say veneer?

While there are many reasons for using veneered construction; the ones we are most familiar with today are most often for economy. Paper and/or vinyl printed with wood grain to make “fake wood” or paper thin veneers applied by machines to hide inferior substrates, etc. With a little research you will find that the roots of veneered construction go back to the ancient Egyptians and it is estimated that 90% of today’s furniture, features veneered construction! Many people are not familiar with the historic past of veneers, nor do they understand the real advantages veneered construction offer. Here is a quote from a Paul Villiards’ 1968 A Manual Of Veneering “Only veneering makes possible panels which are relatively free of dimensions changes in any degree of humidity, the beautiful effect of the various types of figure matching, and furniture and other products made of the exotic and rare hardwood species of the world at prices almost anyone can afford. At one time only royalty could afford such things. The grand piano could not be constructed any other way.”

Are you missing out? As a shop owner do you offer veneering services? If the answer is “no”, your missing out on an “in demand” service that can be a great profit center. Applying and laying two-ply veneers are not that tough, a few simple tools and you are on your way to offering a sought after service. Many restoration shops start with simple jobs and work their way into more complex job while re-investing some of their profits into tools that make the process easier and more efficient.

What veneer do I use? In my daily role I talk to many shop owners from a range of businesses from antique restoration to large scale cabinet building. The one thing that I find is that many of these entrepreneurs are flat-out afraid of veneer work. The common denominator seems to be that they have had a bad experience with thin brittle veneers. As a “for profit” commercial enterprise I would not recommend using single ply veneers and certainly not making your own veneer skins. The process is time consuming and it is much cheaper to just order what you need, in the most economical size and got to work. Let the “weekend warrior” build veneer presses, apply veneer conditioners and make their own veneer skins, while you are applying veneers, turning out jobs and getting paid! While two-ply veneers skins are not something new they are still not being used by many craftsmen. Two-ply veneers can be found on almost all veneered construction up through the 1960’s. Why craftsmen have tried to substitute what was originally used on most furniture with the modern paper backed single ply veneers is a mystery to me. It is most likely that they are using what is most readily available, but hear my heeding; try the two-ply veneer skins, you will not be disappointed! Laying two-ply veneers is a straight forward process that most anyone can do with a little common sense and some basic instruction.

Why would I offer veneering services? And here is the best part for commercial enterprises; veneering is a very nice profit center to any wood related business! No expansive inventories or expensive machines, just a few hand tools, a customer and the desire to turn a profit. In today’s world of “just in time” deliveries go to the internet order the species and relative size of veneer skin you need and in a few short days the UPS truck delivers your veneer skins and you are ready to profit.

Pricing Most quote veneer jobs by the hour, while some prefer to quote by the square foot, either way works as long as you know your costs. The current rates for laying veneer range from $55-$65 per hour or $10 - $15 per square foot not including materials or stain and finish work. While typical two-ply hardwood veneers (oak, walnut or mahogany) run $2.50 to $4.30 per square foot with fancy exotic veneers (crotch mahogany, birds-eye maple or burl walnut) running from $9.60 to $21 per square foot depending on sheets sizes. In addition to the veneer costs (materials), which are always added to the labor quote, you will have glue costs $20 gallon or less and labor. The few hand tools needed to do hand veneer work are usually already lying around most shops. Veneering is one of those rare niches where shops can pretty much set their price and command a handsome profit. This is probably due to the fact that so few shops are confident enough to tackle veneer jobs. A note of caution: as a responsible business everyone knows that appraising the value of someone’s piece is not our job. When a customer inquires about having veneers replaced you should estimate the time required to do the job, quote the materials and let them decide if they wish to have the piece veneered. Don’t get caught in the unethical trap of trying to justify the job’s cost by misleading the customer to their pieces value after the job is complete!

Conclusion If you are not offering veneer services in your business – you are missing a very important profit center. Not to mention a service that your customer may need and be willing to pay for. Don’t send your loyal customer off to another shop! If you are lacking confidence, buy a junk piece and practice, you can always re-sell the piece, and who knows you may even turn a profit?

This article was written by Terry Parrish. Cofounder of Wood Finishers Depot and Master's Magic Products, Inc. Terry has been involved in the business side of touch-up and finishing products since 1984 and in the "hands-on" side of the business since 1977. Terry and his father cofounded Town & Country Sales, a large scale restoration shop still operated by the Parrish family. May not be used or reproduced without specific written permission. Copyright 2005 Parrish & Parrish, Inc. www.woodfinishersdepot.com 1.866.883.3768