Delta Rose Console

J. Wade Beam is one of America's most iconic furniture designers.

After several years working at the legendary Dunbar Furniture Company of Berne, Indiana Wade became Design Director and VP of Sales and Marketing at Brueton Industries Inc. of New York.

It was during this time we worked with Wade to develop many new products for the Brueton collection, including the Virginian Credenza show here.


The elliptical shape of the plywood bend on the Virginian was extremely difficult to achieve, but our success with the final result made this credenza a favorite of all the custom furniture pieces we have ever made.

Following completion of his tenure at Brueton in the mid 1990s, Wade began to dabble with other experimental designs. One of them was a wall hung console he called the Delta Rose.


Measuring 84" long x 18" deep x 36" high this console was extremely angular in form, with high polished Ribbon Sapele ends flanking a triangular gold leaf center wedge.

Although called the Delta Rose, this console became unofficially known as the "Klingon Warship" in our shop. (Star Trek fans might see the humour here).

Testimonials and Referrals

Currently we are in the process of updating the design of our website.

One area I have been looking to expand is the Testimonials and Referrals page. On that note I have been pleasantly surprised at the positive and enthusiastic response we've received from many of our customers.

Some examples are as follows:

“John's work is truly extraordinary! Working through Vivavi we explained the concept of our home, the lighting we had chosen for our bedroom and how much we loved one of the beds that he had designed. He melded these ideas and created a highly contemporary art deco inspired bedroom suite with a very exotic veneer he selected for our project. We were blown away by his final design and the actual pieces were beyond measure in their perfection. There are no words to describe it's beauty or the positive change it brings to our daily life. It inspires us and helps us to come together as a couple. We are blessed by John's work.”

Ara Lucia A. and Michael A.
Greater Chicago area, Illinois

***

"There are maybe a handful of people in the world who can create at the level John does."

J. Wade Beam
VP Sales and Marketing
Brueton Industries, Inc.
New York, New York

***

John:

"Thank you so much for the wonderful desk you made for me. It surpassed my expectations in both beauty and quality. Your customization of the design fits my needs perfectly and it receives daily notice for its seamless lines and gentle but bold curves."

Dr. Sean Boutros, MD, FACS
Houston, Texas

***

"Several years ago we were introduced to John Wiggers through a designer in Chicago and were very happy with several pieces he made to order for us. When we hired a design firm to do our home in Florida we insisted that the designer use Wiggers Custom Furniture Ltd. for as much of the woodwork as possible. My only mistake is that we did not insist that he do all the wood furniture in the home. The quality, craftsmanship, attention to detail was amazing. You can see and feel the difference between John’s work and the other pieces in our home. Everyone who comes to our home comments on how magnificent John's pieces are and are amazed at not only the appearance but the substance and quality of the woodwork. Our designer could not understand how we could use some one from Canada when he had local craftsman available to do the work. Now he knows better."

Arleen and Ken G.
Chicago, Illinois

***

"I have worked with Wiggers Custom Furniture for over 20 years, and am continually impressed with John's design sensibility, customer service, and attention to detail. John is always sensitive to the goals of the project, and offers continual design improvements through his tremendous experience and creative eye. His pieces are much more than simply furniture - they communicate the joy and commitment to artistic creation that are the vanguard of his work. I am honored to work with Wiggers Custom Furniture on any project, anywhere in the world, as I know the standards will always of the highest caliber."

Bob Halper, LC IESNA
Halper Lighting Solutions
Chagrin Falls, Ohio

***

"John is one of the finest furniture makers around."

Vladimir Kagan
Vladimir Kagan Design Group, Inc.
New York, New York, USA

***

“Wiggers Custom is an excellent source for custom furniture product. They have the best mix of technology, craftsmanship, and finish quality. John takes a personal interest in his customers and stays involved throughout the process. He brings great experience and production knowledge to each project; you can always count on the integrity of whatever his company makes.”

Mark Logan
Vice President
Dakota Jackson Inc.
New York, New York

***

"For over 10 years I had the pleasure of working with Wiggers Custom Furniture Ltd.
I found their work to be of exceptional quality and craftsmanship. They always provided expertise in the construction details and manufacturing, thus providing our clients with the most creative furniture available. In my 35 years of experience in the high end American furniture market I never found any manufacturer who produced a
more beautiful finished piece of contemporary furniture than Wiggers Custom Furniture Ltd."

Dale Leland Mardiros
Pacific Showrooms West
San Francisco, California

***

"In my experience as a designer of high end residential, it is imperative to find great artisans to partner with.

John Wiggers raises the bar in every aspect of the custom design process.

It is a pleasure to work with his team and the level of client services his company delivers time after time is tops in the industry."

Olga Markoff
Olga Markoff Design
Chicago, Illinois

***

"This is a short note to thank you for producing the beautiful, oval, black walnut boxes for presentation to the recipients of the Women's Health Research Awards, 2004 - and to thank you for making them under such a tight deadline!

The boxes were presented at a reception to honour the women and men who are leading the way in women's health research in Ontario, and we were delighted to be able to give the beautiful work of an Ontario artist to each of them.

Several recipients have contacted us since the reception to tell us how much they admired the box. It turned out to be the perfect way to acknowledge all of the work they are doing on behalf of Ontario women.

Thank you again for your wonderful work."

Marnie MacKinnon
Chief Operating Officer
Ontario Women's Health Council
Toronto, Ontario

***

Dear John,

"It was a pleasure dealing with you for our order of 16 pieces from your beautiful selection. Whatever custom detail we could dream up, you found a way to put it in reality.

When the U.S. government formally put formaldehyde on the list of known carcinogens on June 10, 2011 (finally!), you must have smiled - and so did we. You have been so much ahead of your time. Thanks to your foresight and care, we could enjoy your pieces from day one without headaches from outgassing and knowing that we purchased truly “healthy” furniture.

Whether it is the wonderful sunburst design of our two Ellipse tables; the fact they are made from sustainable bamboo; the brilliantly manufactured Inamorata nightstands. dresser and boxer chest; the elegant Irenic beds including the clever height adjustment you came up with; the versatility of the Island Tables - it’s more than just excellent workmanship - these are pieces of art made for practical use.

And, not to forget, this furniture comes with a “soul” created by all the spiritual details you put in your work: the Amboyna inlays from the Solomon Islands or the sacred stone in the beds’ headboards, just to name a few.

Thanks again for all your assistance from the planning stages up to the day you personally delivered the beauties into our home."

Kind regards,
H. Meissner
Florida

***

“I have had the privilege of working with John Wiggers, whose passion for high quality craftsmanship and sustainability are contagious. We have shared many inspirational conversations that have resulted in a trust that is unshakeable. John has beautifully crafted my challenging furniture designs with every infinite detail mastered and an environmental integrity that is unmatched by any other.”

Jill Salisbury
el: Environmental Language
Chicago, Illinois

***

"We just finished building a custom home and had been searching for the "perfect" desk for our new home office. We wanted something that was original in style, made to last a lifetime and not too large. It was impossible to find something ready-made that fit all of our criteria. We contacted John and within a few days he had prepared detailed drawings for us to consider. After some fine tuning, we quickly settled on our perfect desk. The desk is flawless and looks exactly as drawn, down to the last detail."

Barry S.
Toronto, Ontario

***

John:

"We wanted you to know how appreciative we are of all the assistance you have provided for us in the manufacturing of our furniture line. Your expertise and knowledge of construction methods, the properties of various wood species, and the techniques available for intricate and complex finishes has been an invaluable asset to our (Shaver/Melahn) furniture division.

Your work goes well beyond the often-difficult task of manufacturing. You have always been there to guide us through design alternatives, providing solutions to design problems and corrections to flaws in concept. As we were designing in the United States you were able to see flaws in prototype and send out red flags warning us of possible problems.

You also kept our price points in mind always trying to deliver product at a level commensurate with the quality and high standards our furniture line demanded. Should you ever need a reference please know that we would be honored to pass on our recommendation of your excellent work."

Rick Shaver and Lee Melahn
Pleasant Living
Madison, Wisconsin

***

"I recently had been retained by one of my Los Angeles clients to do the interior of their home in Toronto. I initially thought I would have to make all the furniture in Los Angeles by my cabinetmakers and finishers and have them shipped and installed in the Toronto location. Through a very good reference, I was given the name of John Wiggers of Wiggers Custom Furniture Ltd. I sent him our plans for many built-ins and furniture pieces, mainly done in exotic and rare woods, and requiring either a low-VOC high-polished or polyurethane finish, which is very difficult to find a manufacturer that is able to do it.

I contracted with John to make and install all of the pieces that I required. During the process, I went to his shop and saw how beautiful he was set up and how clean and organized it was, and knew at that time I was going to receive, from John, quality of the highest level for all cabinetwork and finishing.

When the furniture and cabinets were completed, his workmanship excelled my greatest expectations and my clients were extremely pleased. I wish John would open a shop in Los Angeles, because of the quality of his work, and how pleasant he is to deal with."

Stephen Tomar, ASID, CCIDC
Tomar Lampert Associates
Los Angeles, California

***

"On a recent project I chose Wiggers Custom Furniture Ltd. because I knew their quality and expertise was to the high standard my client required. I have to say their ability went way beyond my expectation. I was able to customize each piece - choose from their extensive range of woods and veneers, stains/finishes and hardware.

John's knowledge of his profession and his company's customer service is an asset to the clients who want the very best - his concern for a green approach and his thinking behind some of his designs - like the Solomon's Desk, is awesome.

The finished pieces are exquisite and to top it off the packaging, which was for overseas, was of the same standard. Each piece will be enjoyed for many, many years.

Thank you for making it such a pleasure to work with your company and know that we will always receive furniture that is perfect."

Heather Tomei
Tomei & Tomei Creative Consultants Limited
Maui, Hawaii

***

"John Wiggers is one of the best furniture makers I have ever met. He is one of only a few that I truly trust with our designs. His dedication to quality construction, material selection, fine finishes, and his sensitivity to design and detail is unmatched in the high-end custom furniture industry. His finished pieces are of an heirloom quality, so rare with today's "throw-away" attitudes. Very, very impressive."

Lee Weitzman
Lee Weitzman Furniture
Chicago, Illinois

***

"My husband and I decided to upgrade from a double to a queen sized bed, but were discouraged by the poor quality and questionable materials of today’s mass-produced furniture. Thus, we decided to have a new bed built that matched our current suite, with the additional criteria of sustainable and nontoxic practices. John Wiggers exceeded our expectations on all counts. John worked closely with us, providing detailed design drawings and photos by email. The Irenic Bed design was adjusted to our exact specifications, and was beautifully constructed such that the grain of the oak veneer radiates in an arc, providing a visually spectacular head and footboard. The materials used are FSC certified, the plywood core and glue are urea formaldehyde free, and the wood was darkened naturally with a vinegar/iron process. John and his son delivered our bed and assisted with its setup. We couldn’t be more pleased with the ease of the process and the final result. We highly recommend commissioning custom furniture from this talented, environmentally conscious, and service oriented craftsman!"

Kimberly and Mark Z.
Peterborough, Ontario

Boardroom Table for the New York Yankees

You never know what you'll find when digging through old photos.

Yes, this is me. It's photographic proof that I was once young, buff, and had hair.

I am sitting at the end of a custom boardroom table we made for the New York Yankees professional baseball team back in January 1996. The top was a modified elliptical oval measuring 26 feet long by 6 feet wide. It was made of highly figured Crotch Mahogany, which was stained and polished to a high sheen.

This boardroom table was commissioned by Brueton Industries of New York, as a modified version of the Virginian Table designed by J. Wade Beam.

(The table was shipped with a Toronto Blue Jays sticker attached to the underside. I'll never know whether George Steinbrenner saw the humour in that).

Jesus Woodworker and the Decision to go CNC

After reading the last 2 posts you're probably wondering what a "Jesus woodworker" is.

My friend Lee Weitzman and I jokingly coined the term many years ago to describe a type of individual who would sometimes come into our employ as cabinet-makers.

It has nothing to do with religion.

To hear Lee describe it, a "Jesus woodworker" is a person who is so caught up in the craft of woodworking that they are oblivious to the notion of producing anything in a timely fashion. Taken to the extreme this type of artist/craftsperson will consider it their sacred duty to spend countless hours in meditation with a tree in order to intuitively discover what the tree wishes to be made into. Upon discovering this Truth in a moment of Zen the artist/craftsperson will then embark on a painstakingly long and time consuming process that will one day (hopefully) result in an actual piece of furniture being made.

If this happens to be the kind of furniture making process that stirs your gravy - no problem.
But do it on your own time, and don't pursue it as a vocation on someone else's dime.

My definition is a little simpler than Lee's because it simply acknowledges the Biblical Jesus of Nazareth as a woodworker who had the ability to walk on water.

In that context a "Jesus woodworker" is a person who feels that they too have the ability to walk on water - if only because they too are woodworkers.

Over the years I have met more than my share of cabinet-makers who suffer this affliction. Sometimes it comes from one who is older, and already set in his ways.
Other times the attitude would come from one of the young bucks - fresh out of school.
With diploma in hand they figure they already know more than I ever could.

In my lifetime the greatest archetype of a "Jesus woodworker" to ever cross my path showed up at my shop in late 1994. For the purposes of this post I'll refer to him as "Tom" (acronym for The Omnipotent Master).

By late 1994 we had so much work coming in that we were compelled to hire more people.

Tom was one of the applicants who showed up looking for a job as cabinet-maker. His resume seemed to check out, because he had worked at some of the better shops in the area. I still remember the interview, because my heart went out to him as he told me his sob story about being out of work for so long and not having money to buy Christmas gifts for his kids. I too had young kids and had suffered the downturn, so I decided to give the guy a chance.

Tom had more than his share of trouble getting up to speed. At first I tolerated his mistakes in the belief that our processes were new to him and he simply needed time to adjust. But even the simplest of tasks were tripping him up.

One day we were making Concerto Tables, which have a round wood top set into plywood rings. The grain pattern of the inset tops were diamond matched (as illustrated below) and in order to make them round we used a brad point bit to partly drill a 3/8" dia. hole into the underside of the top at the point where the veneer seams meet. This hole was then used to set the top on a pin, where it would be spun on an overhead router to make it round.

I gave Tom clear instructions on what to do, and left him to complete the job.

Upon my return a short while later I was shocked by what I saw. Each of the tops had a 3/8" dia hole drilled clean through the face.

"What the heck did you do?" I asked.

"Oh, I thought it would be easier to drill down through the face rather than measure from the underside" was his reply.

"But you drilled a hole clean through every top. What are we supposed to do about that?"

"Umm, maybe we could just putty it in."

"Are you nuts? This is high end stuff. You don't putty that in. And besides, where did you get it into your head to do it this way? I clearly explained what to do, and you didn't do it. Why?"

(What comes next is Tom's answer to this question, and I am not making this up)

"These tops getting screwed up are actually YOUR fault, because nowhere on your drawings does it say NOT to drill a 3/8" hole through the face."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. He was blaming me for his own incompetence.

At this point I had to take a deep breath because in this moment of clarity I found myself fully aware of the fact that I live in an egalitarian country where it's not against the law to be stupid.

However, it is against the law to slap someone upside the head for being stupid.

With that in mind my thoughts suddenly raced to the world of mathematics. I knew how much I was paying Tom per hour, and how much his drug, dental and medical plans were costing me. Add in the statutory holidays, sick days, EI insurance, EHT, pension plan contributions and all the other costs of keeping this guy in my employ - and when my mental calculator punched out a total I suddenly realized that the hourly cost of giving this guy a paycheck every week was virtually identical to the financing costs on a 5-Axis CNC machining centre.

It was not difficult to figure out what my next decision would be.

Considering that I have always been an equal opportunity employer, I decided to give all the other employers an equal opportunity at Tom's services.

To use a sports analogy, Tom was now an unrestricted free agent.

The Journey Continues (Pt. 12) - Ramping Up Again

Having experienced the severity of the economic recession of the early 1990s I had surprisingly mixed feelings about the surge of new work coming in from places like Brueton. Although one part of me was thankful to be busy once more, there was another part of me that dreaded the thought of ramping back up to warp speed again.

When we were at our busiest in the 1980s I was constantly working long hours, including evenings and weekends. This made it difficult to do simple things, such as spend time with my young family. Although it was tough to decelerate the business as orders dried up, it was also a welcome relief in some ways because I was simply burned out.

During these down times I began to sketch out all kinds of ideas of furniture concepts I wanted to have made. This became a surprisingly enjoyable exercise and it had an almost meditative quality for me. Deep down I loved the creativity of it all - conceiving ideas; sketching them out; then figuring out how to go about making them into reality. The latter part was easy because the science of making was something I had down to a fine art already - after years of taking other people's ideas and transforming them into finished product.

The first prototype I ended up taking from sketchbook to bench was a Biedermeier style desk - very similar to the Rainforest Desk shown below.
An old bundle of Myrtle Burl veneer that had been stored away for years was used to make the inset of the top, while offcuts of Macassar Ebony were utilized to make the apron, legs and plinths. Not long after the desk was completed I was fortunate to have it sold - to an author who was looking for an inspiration place where he could write his books.

The success and sale of this first piece - especially one that was wholly of my own creation - actually inspired me to consider scaling my shop down even smaller, to focus exclusively on making and selling my own designs. This fantasy, however, was short-lived because the economic reality of the situation had its own facts and figures.

For one thing I was now the father of 3 young children, and as much as it might be righteous and honourable to pursue the path of the starving artist - also starving one's family in the process was not a viable option.

In addition, despite how cool I thought my furniture pieces were, the marketplace as a whole was not sharing my enthusiasm. Aside from the initial desk sale, three consecutive years of displaying at IIDEX did virtually nothing to stimulate any interest in my designs although, to be fair, the recession going on at the time wasn't conducive for sales either.

Around 1992 or 1993 there was also a Call for Entry for furniture designs to be submitted for an upcoming book entitled "Conservation by Design". This was a collaborative effort by W.A.R.P. (Woodworkers' Alliance for Rainforest Protection) and the furniture design program at RISD (Rhode Island School of Design) to select tangible examples of sustainable furniture designs. I was thrilled beyond belief at this opportunity to be published, and felt certain that my Rainforest Desk would be one of the pieces selected.

Sadly, of the 76 furniture makers accepted for publication, I wasn't one of them.

About a year later there was another Call for Entry - and another rejection - once again from RISD. This time it was my "Tower of Power" that bit the proverbial dust.


It was shortly after we started ramping up with Brueton that I had a lengthy discussion with J. Wade Beam on what my business focus should be. Wade advised me to abandon my efforts to develop my own pieces and focus, instead, on being an OEM supplier to companies like Brueton. At the time this seemed like sage advice, for a couple of reasons.

First, given the rejections I was getting it seemed obvious that my furniture pieces weren't resonating with the more knowledgeable design academics of the world. Second, thanks to the recession there was now a seismic shift under way in the way in which companies had their pieces made. Making things in-house was now falling out of vogue as more and more designers began to outsource rather than invest in their own production. (Of course, taken to its extreme this ultimately led to the almost complete offshoring of production that we now see today).

As the 1990s wore on our base of OEM clients expanded to include not only Brueton but also Vladimir Kagan, Rick Shaver, Monroe Sherman (Sherman Designs), and Lee Weitzman. To keep up with the growing influx of work we were soon compelled to expand the size of our staff.

Although I was never keen on having large numbers of people working for me, in many ways I had little choice if I was going to keep my customers happy.

But it was only after I hired a "Jesus woodworker" that I decided to go CNC.

The Journey Continues (Pt. 11) - The Call From Brueton

When I was told that J. Wade Beam from Brueton was on the phone I thought for sure that someone was playing a practical joke on me.

Brueton at the time was one of the world's elite high end furniture companies. Wade was both the chief designer and Director of Sales and Marketing for them, and for the past five years I had been trying (without success) to meet with Wade each time I travelled to New York. Each effort made at their showroom in the D&D Building was rebuffed by the same reply: namely that Brueton did their own woodwork and didn't require outside vendors.

After confirming the call was for real I asked why he was calling. Wade told me that Brueton's primary focus was stainless steel, and they had near zero in-house woodworking capacity. They were looking to expand the wood side of their business with some new designs, but to do this they needed talent. Apparently he'd heard of us through the industry grapevine and was calling to see if we were interested.

Were we interested?

Let's put it this way: If you're a car maker and a guy named Enzo Ferrari calls to see if you want to build some high end cars with him, what do you say?

Hell, yes !!

For months on end we worked intensively with Wade to develop a wide range of new designs, which were eventually unveiled at NEOCON in Chicago. It was during NEOCON that I finally met the company's owner, Leo Fromm.

Mr. Fromm was a successful publishing magnate from Germany who owned several companies. His interest in owning Brueton seemed to stem from his absolute love for fine furniture. I got the impression that, for him, owning Brueton was akin to why some men own professional sports teams - for the love of what the franchise represents, and a passion for excellence.

In the photo above Mr. Fromm is reviewing one of the new Concerto Table prototypes. He especially loved how the 4-way box match of the Crotch Mahogany top formed a pattern that, to him, looked like a butterfly's wings. I was astounded at how something so seemingly simple could move this man so deeply.

It wasn't long before company president Howard Chapman sat down with me to write out a slew of orders. With several strokes of the pen we were suddenly very busy again.

The ensuing years turned out to be an especially exciting time for us, because many of the designs coming out of Brueton really pushed the envelope of our woodworking and finishing capabilities.

The Virginian Credenza was probably the most difficult of all the new prototypes. Maybe for that reason it was also one of the most satisfying pieces we have ever produced. The main body was comprised of two half shells - each made of an inner and outer kerfed ply filled with epoxy resin, which was then vacuum formed around an elliptical plug.

The back shell was fitted with shelves and dividers, while the front was cut into doors. The top was center butt matched Crotch Mahogany trimmed with ribbon sapele. The stainless steel detail at the floor is actually convex in shape, to emulate the curve of the casework. All exposed woodwork was finished in high gloss polyester to accentuate the grain.

The Virginian Table presented some challenges of it's own. While the elliptical base was easy enough to make, shaping the bottom of it to match the freeform curve of the stainless steel plinth as challenging to say the least. The box matched Crotch Mahogany top was encased in a 3" band of solid ribbon mahogany, which needed to be step routed by hand with custom carbide to achieve its deep elliptical profile.

Concerto Tables had quirks of their own, especially in final assembly. The holes in the stainless steel ring had to align perfectly with the leg bushings for these tables to be symmetrical.

During its peak years Brueton was a magnet for creative talent such as Mitchell Pickard - shown here testing out his new Melrose Chair. In subsequent years we would collaborate with Mitch on on many of his furniture designs, including the Angeline Console which was recently featured in "500 Cabinets" by Lark Books.

As a testament to his creative range Mitch is currently designing and building some very cool custom motorcycle wheels and parts at his own company, Pickard USA

Our collaboration with Brueton allowed us to produce some exceptional custom furniture pieces, including this 22' long boardroom table for the New York Yankees professional baseball team. What isn't apparent in the photo is how we managed to subtly blend 3 elliptical spline segments into a functional ergonomic shape. This table would otherwise have been "pointy" at the ends had a pure ellipse been used.

Prior to shipping we stuck a Toronto Blue Jays sticker to the underside of the top.

I never heard if George Steinbrenner found that funny.

The Journey Continues (Pt.7) - Our Biggest Customer Goes Supernova

The year 1987 was pretty much the high water mark for the economic boom attributed to Reaganomics. At the time I wasn't paying a whole lot of attention to things like the stock market, but what I do know is that we were exceptionally busy at work. Even the stock market crash of 1987 seemed to have little impact - at least at first.

In addition to my furniture work there was also a great deal happening in my personal life at the time. In 1983 I met a wonderful gal named Teresa, and we ended up getting married the following year. In 1985 we bought our first house togther, and in 1987 our first child was born - a son by the name of Bradley.

As a mirror to that timeline my parents split up and divorced, which meant that in 1987 I ended up buying out my mother's half of the business as part of her settlement with my father. Later that year, as a complete surprise to me, my father suddenly announced that he was semi-retiring to Florida. The news caught me totally off guard.

Suddenly, at the age of 28, and with a wife and baby at home I found myself thrust into the role of sole proprietor of a busy custom woodworking shop that was now employing a staff of 20. I worked my butt off day and night to stay on top of things, and it was overwhelming to say the least.

On a personal level it became exceptionally difficult to work the long hours that are the norm for small business owners, because by the time my son turned the age of one he had become accustomed to the routine of me coming home at night to play and spend time with him. On nights when I had to go back to finish a project to meet a deadline he would cry as I headed out the door. It broke my heart when this happened.

During this time Richard Mark was our biggest customer. This showroom was owned by a fellow who loved to live large, and I was never comfortable with this guy's ability to spend lavishly on a lifestyle that was far bigger than his business could sustain. If you can afford the lifestyle - that's one thing. But if you're burning through money faster than it's coming in: that's a disaster waiting to happen.

As long as orders and deposits kept flowing in faster than he could spend it, I figured he could stay above water. But once the tide turned, I knew it would be time to get off the proverbial beach - because the tsunami of economic reality was going to crash hard.

After the stock market crash of October 1987 it didn't take long for the warning signs to begin to flash. Initially it became evident that new money was being used to pay older bills - a classic example of "robbing Peter to pay Paul". Things gradually worsened as evidence of check kiting began to appear.

To understand what check kiting is, one has to realize that in the 1980s electronic banking was pretty much non-existent for small business. When you wrote a check that was drawn on an account in one bank, and deposited in an account at another bank, the process of clearing and transferring the funds was mostly a paper process that sometimes took days to work through the system. This window of time was known as a "float", and it created the opportunity to write checks and make payments in situations where there were insufficient funds in the account.

In light of the eroding financial situation at Richard Mark, I stepped up my efforts to transition into more work from companies such as Brueton, Dakota Jackson, Karl Springer and Ron Seff. At Brueton I was always turned away stone cold at the door. The folks at Springer seemed immersed in their own internal chaos, and I also made little headway there. But fortunately some doors were opened at Ron Seff and Dakota Jackson. These latter two seemed to have a backlog of work that would give them some forward momentum in the face of a rapidly slowing market, and I was happy to segue into these new opportunities to make tables, wall units, built-ins and other assorted furniture.

By 1989 the situation at Richard Mark had reached detonation point. Although we were now shipping on a truckload basis, the payment situation had deteriorated to the point where old balances weren't getting paid until new shipments were ready to deliver. Checks from Richard Mark were now bouncing on a continuous basis, with new checks replacing old checks at a rate that made it near impossible to figure out what our true account balance was at any given time.

This dynamic also created a situation of perpetual financial entrapment, because the only way to leverage payment for owed monies was to literally roll over debt with new deliveries. In this scenario I figured there was only one way of escape, but it would involve a 2-step process.

The first step was to create a "phantom truck". For one month we went through the motions of pretending to work on a new batch of orders. Phone calls were made and faxes were exchanged to maintain the illusion of business as usual. Meanwhile, we established an account at Barclay's Bank in New York - at the same branch that Richard Mark had their account.

The deal was that when the next truck was ready to ship Richard Mark would make a direct deposit into our account at Barclay's. By this point Richard Mark was struggling to pay balances on old orders that had already been delivered and THEY had been paid for. Given the small float window of an intra-bank transaction I knew there would only be a brief opportunity of time to clear our funds from the account before that check also bounced.

On the scheduled day of delivery I caught an early flight to New York and cabbed myself to a street corner opposite the bank. And there I waited. Shortly after the bank opened at 9:00 a.m. - and right on cue - I watched from a distance as Richard Mark's accountant walked down the street and into the bank to deposit the check as agreed. I knew the check was worthless, and so did the accountant, but Barclay's wouldn't figure it out until the paperwork made the round of the desks.

After watching the accountant leave the bank I made my way inside, and drew a certified check to empty our account. Due to the nature of the paper system at the time the funds were there - at least as far as the bank was concerned. Therefore they didn't balk at giving me the money.

With certified check in hand I called Richard Mark's president to give him the news.

To make a long story short: our relationship with our biggest customer was now terminated.

As difficult as this was to do, the outcome was inevitable because Richard Mark was now unravelling to the point of no return. Under these circumstances I felt it was better to decelerate our company now than go full bore into financial oblivion as an unsecured creditor.

Teresa was also now pregnant with our second child.