Godfrey business barrelling along
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Faith and Ryan Jenkins apply finish to their creations at Second Hand Barrels in Godfrey. The business has grown so much that in March it will move into a commercial facility on Stanka Lane in Godfrey,
Faith and Ryan Jenkins apply finish to their creations at Second Hand Barrels in Godfrey. The business has grown so much that in March it will move into a commercial facility on Stanka Lane in Godfrey,
Faith and Ryan Jenkins apply finish to their creations at Second Hand Barrels in Godfrey. The business has grown so much that in March it will move into a commercial facility on Stanka Lane in Godfrey,
Faith and Ryan Jenkins apply finish to their creations at Second Hand Barrels in Godfrey. The business has grown so much that in March it will move into a commercial facility on Stanka Lane in Godfrey,
GODFREY — A Godfrey man’s custom furniture business is barrelling along, and demand is so high that he will soon move into a larger space to accommodate the demand.
“I’m having a barrel of fun to say the least,” said 33-year-old Ryan Jenkins, who owns and operates Second Hand Barrels. As the name implies, Jenkins sells used, White Oak distillery barrels, either unmodified or fashioned into planters, cabinets, tables, glass holders, and any kind of furniture that clients can imagine.
Sometimes the demand is so great that Jenkins feels like he’s over a barrel.
“It’s crazy what it’s become,” Jenkins said of his home-based business. “I try to create a supply of barrel craft to keep in stock, but a lot of times I’m just trying to keep up making it to order. I’ve always got full barrels and planters ready to pick up at any time.”
The business grew out of a pastime that Jenkins had of buying and selling things to make a few extra dollars. In 2010 a relative made Jenkins aware of two oak barrels that were being sold from the Dr. Pepper plant in St. Louis. Jenkins bought the barrels for $50 each, put them on Craigslist, and had 150 calls in one day from prospective buyers.
“So of course, being in the state of mind to buy and re-sell, I figured I needed more barrels,” Jenkins said.
But obtaining more of the White Oak wares wasn’t as easy as shooting fish in a barrel.
“I called hundreds of different places. I combed the Midwest for barrels, and finally made contact with a couple of guys in Kentucky and drove down there to fill my pickup truck,” Jenkins said. “I listed the new set of barrels at a higher price and sold all of them within a weekend.”
The success of selling the unaltered products caused Jenkins to think outside the barrel, and that’s when he started crafting planters and furniture from the in-demand containers. One of his most sought-after creations is a “cradle” style planter where the barrel is sawed vertically, creating an oblong rather than a round planter.
Jenkins is no longer scraping the bottom of the barrel to come up with the raw material for his products. He has developed relationships with several large distilleries in Kentucky, Tennessee, Indiana, Ohio and elsewhere and buys the barrels in truckloads of up to 300 at a time.
Second Hand Barrels will move into a commercial facility on Stanka Lane in Godfrey in March, and Jenkins then plans to expand his sales across the Midwest. Jenkins works full time so he, his wife and niece work on barrel projects during evenings and weekends. Jenkins’ two young sons also help with such tasks as drilling drain holes for the planters.
Jenkins didn’t have a lot of woodworking experience when he rolled out the barrel for his new business, but noted that his wood-carving grandfather was an artist who created incredibly realistic figures in wood.
“There’s so much heritage to barrels. They are for the most part still hand-made and the preferred wood is Missouri White Oak,” Jenkins said. “People from across the world buy barrels from the United States because of this White Oak, which is also the official state tree of Illinois.”
More information about Second Hand Barrels is available on Facebook or by calling 618-610-7582.
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January 25, 2021 at 01:04AM
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Godfrey business barrelling along - Alton Telegraph
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