An eastern Ontario family business completed its comeback from the recession on Saturday, opening a new warehouse in Kemptville.
DFC Woodworks president Francois Bruneau said the company stepped up its online presence after 2008’s recession hit them hard.
“In 2008 we went through a very hard time,” he said. “We lost 80 percent of our sales, from $400,000 to $80,000 in sales.”
After their change in focus, they said they started to get orders for items like Adirondack chairs from around the world.
“We have doubled in sales and haven't been able to keep up with demand,” said Dina Bruneau.
That success translated into their new Kemptville warehouse, where 14 staff members build about 75 chairs per week.
Each chair takes between four to eight hours to make, with customers saying their quality is noticed.
“We've ended up buying the whole set and we love them,” said Sonia Pilon. “(When we have) people over they always ask where they got them.”
The Bruneaus said they want to stay in Kemptville for a long while, giving some of the proceeds from their grand opening to the local hospital.
With a report from CTV Ottawa’s Natalie Duddridge
