Redwood and a demon d-i-yer

li EANUT BRITTLE, popcorn, f pretzels and redwood may appear to have little in common, but all have the distinct habit of becoming irresistible after the first nibble. Because of the addictive qualities of redwood, success with the first project tends to generate a steady string of repeat sales, including companion item sales of stain, paint, fastenings, hardware and tools. These sales often continue in a series of profitable encores for years.

Ed Johnson of Bainbridge lsland, Wa., is a classic example of today's burgeoning breed of compulsive and highly skilled do-it-yourselfers who became repeat customers in home centers. Six years ago he set out to upgrade a rustic beach cottage with a magnificent saltwater view of Puget Sound. Eight projects later he has meticulously fashioned a permanent residence that is every bit as spectacular as the view that goes with it. Johnson divides his purchases between two Bainbridge lsland retailers, Lumbermen's and Kingston Lumber. Every year for six years running his account has amounted to a minimum of several thousand dollars.

His romance with redwood started with a purchase of Simpson select knotty thick butt rabbeted bevel siding which he used on the existing cottage structure as well as 900 square feet of space that he added. Next, he was buying materials to wrap two levels of construction heart redwood decking around the new addition with views overlooking the water. His third big purchase was a hot tub of all heart redwood built into a corner of the lower deck.

As Johnson says, "At about this stage I came to realize something about redwood that professional architects, designers and builders have designed and built upon for years: redwood is one of the most versatile and compatible of all the residental.building materials you can buy for the outside, inside, and all around the house."

At this point he decided to carry the rich,deep horizontal shadow lines of the exterior siding to the skirting on the outdoor sport court. This nice touch of continuity was achieved with a buy of select knotty redwood bevel siding that matches the exterior of the house. In fact, the very latest of the outdoor projects picked up the same thread of continuity when Ed screened off the view of a shed on adjacent property with a fence-like screen made uP of the same pattern of select knotty redwood bevel siding as he had Purchased for siding the house and skirting the sport court.

Story at a Glance

How a first redwood sale grew to many . . . over $12 thousand in six years to one do-it-yourselfer. . what related materialswere included ideasfor repeat sales.

Carrying the continuity of redwood indoors, Ed bought clear grade tongue and groove redwood to aPPIY to the steeply pitched cathedral ceiling of the new addition. This sum- mer's project shopping list included paneling for the bathroom. A clear grade V-joint tongue and groove redwood was applied horizontally. At the time of this writing the paneling of the utility room, featuring an additional purchase ofclear grade tongue and groove redwood matching the bathroom, was already underway.

The redwood encore buying tally is impressive: Eight projects in six years involved many dollars invested in four grades and three patterns of redwood. And the added beauty for the building material retailer of an array of profitable related-item sales that accompanied each project.

With redwood the first sale is usually only the beginning. the beginning of encore after encore of profitable sales of redwood plus the companion items that go along with each project that the growing ranks of Ed Johnsons undertake. The building materials retailer who encourages such building projects stands to gain as much as the homeowner who acquires a more beautiful home.