Within the last year, Denton residents Kevin and Brooke Fontenot turned their personal hobby into a business right in their own home. Now more than ever, they said their commitment to unique and personal craftsmanship is paying off.
Tree and Hatchet is a local and family-owned business in Denton that specializes in handcrafted furniture and home decor that are built to last for generations. Every product sold is handmade using local or exotic wood from abroad. What started as a fun personal hobby for co-founders Kevin and Brooke eventually grew into a fruitful business.
“We just started doing furniture for ourselves and realized it was something we really liked doing,” Kevin said. “It was well worth taking the risk on it.”
Tree and Hatchet is currently operated from the comfort of the Fontenot’s home. They utilize their garage as a workshop where it’s accessible to work from home. Due to the restrictions caused by the current pandemic, they said, this has been a great way to keep operating their business while staying safe working from home.
“It’s been really nice to work with Kevin,” Brooke said. “I think we’re adjusting pretty well, it’s definitely been a learning curve figuring out how things work.”
The Fontenots are openly passionate about their work and want people to know how much goes into it. Kevin said they believe making products with long shelflife and durability is important and is a concept that should be shared with their community.
“We’re trying to educate people about the process, and why things do cost what they cost when they’re handmade and made not to last for a couple of years, but for generations to come,” Kevin said.
The Tree and Hatchet brand conducts and handles business almost entirely online, whether it’s through their Facebook, Instagram or on their website. They have a contact bar on their website where customers can reach out for a quote on a custom piece of furniture or décor.
“I posted on the Denton Facebook page to try and churn up additional business, and every time I post there are dozens of messages that I end up getting about working on upcoming projects,” Kevin said. “Denton is a logistic, fun and eclectic community that values handmade and well-handcrafted goods.”
The Fontenots said the demand for their furniture and décor has continued to rise. The business has received several positive reviews and is recommended by many in the local community.
“I ordered a set of coasters and they turned out beautifully,” said Tree and Hatchet customer Colten Goll. “[The coasters are] very good quality and working with Tree and Hatchet was very easy with quick delivery.”
The next big step for Tree and Hatchet is opening up their brick-and-mortar workshop in Denton, but Kevin said it’s a business venture that might have to wait a while.
“That’s the hope, that we’ll be able to weather what 2020 looks like,” Kevin said. “For us, it would be a more commercial type space that would be a little bit larger from the garage workshop that we work from currently. It would give us more room and more productivity and than have a showroom as well. Unfortunately, we don’t know if or when that will happen.”
Until then, Brooke and Kevin will continue to operate Tree and Hatchet locally from their home in Denton.
Featured image: Courtesy Tree and Hatchet
Article Originally Published by on North Texas Daily
Source: North Texas Daily
