Have you ever seen a stunning handmade piece of furniture and wondered: do they make money woodworking? Cameron Anderson is owner of Blacktail Studio, a woodworking business that turns resin and recycled wood into beautiful art pieces and furniture, and today we’re touring his studio to see behind the scenes of his business.
Woodworking started as a hobby for Cameron, whose work as a pilot gave him lots of days off in a row. Today, his luxury tables, epoxy art installations, and custom woodworking projects sell for as much as $30K a piece. His Blacktail Studio YouTube channel is equally successful, with more than 1 million subscribers and millions of views on most of their videos.
In our interview today, we’ll get all the details of what it takes to start a successful woodworking business, from the equipment and space you need to get started to how he learned the skills and where he gets the wood. Unsurprisingly, many of his clients come to him from his popular YouTube channel, so we’ll also find out how he built such a strong following there, and what kind of content he posts that keeps viewers coming back.
Along with making his own woodworking projects, Cameron hosts epoxy and woodworking workshops at Blacktail Studio to help other makers learn the craft and design their own pieces. We’ll find out how this educational side of the business has helped him grow, and hear some of his tips for succeeding in the woodworking business.
0:00 Intro 0:20 Starting a WoodWorking Business 1:19 Breaking Down Revenue 1:42 Scaling A WoodWorking Business 2:18 How YouTube Can Help Your Business 3:28 Advice for Woodworking Beginners 4:31 Tips For Starting Out 5:36 Expenses To Be Aware Of 6:25 Crucial Skills and Techniques 7:38 How To Increase Profit Margins 8:33 Is It Time To Quit Your Day Job? 9:16 The Benefits of Cam’s Woodworking Course 10:13 Must-Have Equipment 10:56 Finding The Best Wood 11:51 FREE Marketing Techniques 13:21 The Importance of a Website 14:10 Tips on Closing Deals 15:44 Sneak-Peek Into Cam’s Process 16:15 How To Make a Full Time Living Woodworking 16:52 How To Avoid Failure 17:24 The Key To Pricing Tables 18:32 Cam’s Personal Projects 19:43 Where To Sell Your First Product 21:06 Systems and Software 21:53 Don’t Get Lured By Money 22:39 The Makerspace Database 24:06 Blitz Time With Cam! 24:57 Tips on Shipping Large Items 26:20 From Hobby To Business 27:15 Custom Furniture Order Process 28:09 The Table Making Process 29:06 The Best Business Book
