Sawdust In Our Blood…

1965. My first woodworking class was in high school, where I built a solid walnut desk and nightstand.

1974. My woodworking career began in an empty 12’ X 12’ hog pen in a neighbor’s barn. (Yes, there were hogs in the other pens) Using mostly borrowed tools, my “shop” provided barely enough space for me and the porch swing or nightstand I was working on.

1975. For fifteen dollars a month, I rented a 24’ X 24’ house in the back hills of Tennessee. I converted half the house into my woodshop, where I built toy cars and trucks with steel roller skate wheels, pine night stands, multi-storied bird houses, and walnut porch swings.

1976. Married my close friend, Mary Virginia Turpin. We lived in one half the old rented house and slept in the attic, with the shop in the other half. Along with toy cars and trucks, night stands, bird houses, and porch swings, I built simple bookcases and furniture for our own home, including a baby cradle, crib, and playpen.

Wow, was that ever dusty and noisy! Mary tells people the house was so dusty she had to wash dishes after and before we ate.

Back then, I also worked as a country carpenter, building and remodeling homes and barns for neighbors. Many home building customers asked me to build cabinets for them onsite. It never dawned on me that I might actually become a cabinetmaker.

Noah was born in 1977. Daniel followed close behind in 1979. In 1980, we built a new house for ourselves.

Early 1982. A homeowner asked me to build kitchen cabinets for his new house. I asked him if I could build his cabinets from my house. I fondly recall the moment when, in the graveled floor basement, with a rough lumber workbench, and a rickety old 8” table saw, "Country Woodshop" was officially born.

That basement space was tight! Whenever I ripped a sheet of plywood, I needed to stop the table saw partway through the sheet, and pivot the saw so I could get past the basement support post.

Mid 1982. I was down with the flu, and met John Heubi over the phone. John also had the flu, and we launched a friendship that stretched beyond two decades. John, a Master Cabinetmaker who had been apprenticed by an old German Cabinetmaker, offered to teach me what he knew.

1982-1984. I was building cabinets and furniture full-time from our basement. Soon, I made a “major business decision” to purchase an old, used 10” Craftsman table saw for $125. The saw was under our bedroom, and Mary rocked the children to sleep to the whines and hums of the saw, sander, and router. The boys spent long hours downstairs, playing in sticks and sawdust and watching me work.

John Heubi continued training me. Over the next five years he not only taught me the skills of cabinetmaking, but more importantly, John gave me the heart of a craftsman. I also received a year’s training in classical solid wood furniture design and construction from the former Korner Kupboard, McMinnville, Tennessee.

1984. We were asked to design and build cabinets for a local hospital, Coffee Medical Center in Manchester, Tennessee. That project
lasted three years. Soon, other hospitals, architects, and contractors began contacting us.

1986. Country Woodshop was producing cabinets for businesses and homes of all sizes. One big break came when we were asked to build and install stockroom fixtures for a nearby new Wal-Mart store. One project led to another, then another, and many more. Soon, we were sending tractor-trailer loads of cabinets to new Wal-Marts and other retail stores across the country.

1990. Steve Roberts, former candidate for US Congress, formed a cabinet installation division of his construction company, All-American Enterprises, to meet our growing needs for an installation crew. We kept Steve and his crew busy nearly full-time.

1986-1994. We gradually phased out all cabinet lines except commercial retail spaces. Still under the name Country Woodshop, we built cabinets for more than 130 Wal-Mart stores, plus several K-Mart stores, grocery stores, pharmacies, and clothing stores. We sent cabinets valued at more than $2 million dollars to 22 states, including the first Wal-Mart stores in Alaska and Hawaii.

1994-2003. Changing Directions. We decided to contribute more to the local community and become a "village cabinet shop." We turned our sights away from Wal-Mart and the nationwide market so we could work closer to home, focusing on getting to know our neighbors. We changed our name to New Dimensions.

2004. Facing a New Challenge. With our sons becoming grown men, they each needed to choose whether to pursue his own career or remain in the family cabinet business. After much deliberation, we all decided we enjoy woodworking and working together. So we expanded, and moved into the larger, corporate world. And we changed our name to:

We decided to specialize in architectural cabinets for medical facilities, hotels, stores, office buildings and other businesses—regionally, and across the nation—because that’s what really love doing. Our beautiful, new 12,000 square foot shop is located on I-44 in St James, Missouri. 12,000 cars and trucks pass our sign each day. We recently purchased state-of-the art computer software and several pieces of precision, high-speed manufacturing equipment.

God has blessed us with five talented, godly sons and four beautiful daughters. My sons are all skilled craftsmen. We all form the design team, helping clients translate their dreams into finished creations.

Noah bids and manages most of the projects. Daniel keeps our equipment and vehicles in top
repair. Josh manages the plant and handles some of the finer woodworking. For example, he's built two acoustic guitars, one of which is valued at more than $3,000! Ben manages the shipping and receiving department. Nate produces most of our drawings and cutting lists. Zach, Rob, and Tim do most of our cabinet building. Julie is setting up and managing sophisticated tracking systems.

In 2004, Nate built a curio cabinet for a school project. Competing against 40 other schools in his region, Nathan's project won first place! A couple months later, he went to the international competition in Flagstaff, Arizona. In the presence of 2,900 other students, Nathan again won first place! In 2005, he competed against 63 entries, coming in first once again! And Ben came in second! Then, in 2006, Nate won first place again, for the third year in a row!

In May, 2005 we were awarded the Architectural Woodwork Institute (AWI) Award of Excellence for an African mahogany registration desk we built for the Grand Plaza Hotel in Branson, Missouri. AWI is the most prestigious professional woodworking organization in America. Our story was published in Design Solutions Magazine and distributed to more than 27,000 designers, architects and woodworking professionals. This magazine also was distributed at the 2005 International Woodworking Show in Las Vegas, the largest woodworking trade event in the world. Later that year, we were awarded “Best in Category” for this project.

So what does all this mean to you? We're selling more than cabinets. We're selling excellence and the results you want. If you’re looking for a dependable cabinet shop that provides exceptional cabinets for your specific needs, we would love to help you.

Ten Reasons Why You Should Make Cohen Architectural Woodworking Your Favorite Cabinet Shop

1. We have never missed a delivery date!
2. Excellent craftsmanship. We build to the Architectural Woodwork Institute’s Quality Standards. Our work has won national and international awards.
3. We build relationships. I really mean that! Ask anyone who works with us. Contact us for business or personal references.
4. We’re here to stay. We began in 1975, and have been building commercial cabinets since 1984.
5. We’re loyal to our clients. Once you begin a relationship with us, we’ll channel our “marketing efforts” into nurturing our relationship with you.
6. We’ll custom design your project or offer suggestions to improve your design.
7. If needed we can draw your project on-site, using a laptop and AutoCAD.
8. We do nationwide delivery.
9. Our installers are professional.
10. Our pricing is competitive.

We’re building excellent relationships with some of the finest clients, contractors, and suppliers in the industry. We’re also building cabinets for Wal-Mart again, delivering and installing nationwide.

John Heubi taught me a style he calls "Quiet Beauty." Balanced simplicity. That’s how we want our whole lives. Balanced. Simple. Focused.

We want to share our lives with you. When you choose Cohen Architectural Woodworking, LLC, you won't feel like "just a customer." We'll treat you like part of the family. And we'll make your life more beautiful.

That's our promise!

Meet Sandy.