Against the grain: Making Wood Good on joining hobby and livelihood

When the pandemic hit, Joe Birchley found it was the ideal time to level up his lifelong interest in carpentry and build a business. Starting small and taking on local projects, he expanded Making Wood Good and hasn’t looked back.

A bespoke business

Growing up in the industry with a father in the trade, Joe has always had a great passion for design and creativity. Taking pride in his attention to detail, he provides joinery solutions from his home in the heart of Shropshire, and genuinely loves it.

“Whether it be writing and recording music, or designing and manufacturing original carpentry products, seeing something created from nothing gets me fired up in the morning. I have an innate attention to minute detail and, in carpentry, you need that level of inspection of not only your work but your processes.”

“If it’s not good it’s not finished.”

In order to be the best, build a brilliant reputation and offer a bespoke service, this founder favours a ‘not good, not finished’ motto. He explains that errors allow us to keep learning, and making mistakes is all part of the journey. But the most valuable lesson, and his advice to anyone starting out, is to take the time to get things right.

“Don’t treat one job as more important than another. Everything you do is important and key to achieving your overall goals. Focus on everything. Don’t cut corners and do every little job to the absolute best of your ability.

“My one regret would be not making the leap of faith to start this business years ago.”

While he’s a firm believer in having no regrets, especially in the things he hasn’t done, he does consider the benefits of starting a business sooner, joking that his knees and back were stronger then. But today, he’s simply glad he took the leap of faith.

Describing no better definition of success than repeat business and recommendations, he talks about the feeling of pride when a customers’ expectations have been exceeded, when they are delighted with his efforts and share their experience with potential future customers. And if it’s not for those memorable moments, it’s all worthwhile for the knowledge that he can provide for his children – Dora and Daisy.

“I have the utmost respect for people who have followed their ambitions and dreams.”

Joe respects those who stray from playing it safe, and go out to achieve whatever is possible without hesitancy. He joins the many solopreneurs who go against the grain to set up their own business, and trust the path they have taken – believing that everyone has an interest or talent, and can make it happen with self-confidence, methodology and the right tools.

A smooth finish

For Joe, these tools came in the form of 123 Reg’s Website Builder, which gave his business the perfect polish it deserved. The biggest snag throughout his start-up journey had been creating awareness of Making Wood Good and the bespoke service he works hard to provide, but 123 Reg has proved to be a great solution.

“I used my website and social media platforms to create a wider customer base, create new products and take on larger-scale carpentry projects. The 123 Reg Website Builder allowed me to get my message out there and, as I am able to update content whenever I want, this was easy to carry across social media too.”

“123-Reg has, hands down, the most user-friendly website builder… completely outclassing the rest.”

Other website builders have put a spanner in the works for this carpenter in the past, but Joe found 123 Reg easy and intuitive, with the ability to update anytime, try out different ideas and consider new marketing campaigns.

“Building a website with 123 Reg was enjoyable and in no way frustrating. I wasn’t left feeling like I should’ve concentrated more during my IT classes at school. I’m no whizz kid but I didn’t feel out of my depth at any point. It’s intuitive and logical; the way these systems should, but also need to be.”

“The process of speaking to a 123 Reg guide was brilliant. Some technical support departments simply give advice, but my experience of 123 Reg is that they go one step further and resolve the problem for you.

“The technical support is industry leading. 123-Reg are like my company’s own IT department.”

With over 20 years’ experience and more than 1 million websites connected to 123 Reg services, the UK’s number one domain provider is proud to support great British businesses like Making Wood Good, and to be an extended member of their team.

Feeling inspired?

If you’re inspired by Joe’s story and you are ready to start your own online journey, we’re ready to help. You can create your own website with our Website Builder here.

We also love hearing about our customers’ success stories. So, if you have a great story to share about how 123 Reg has helped your online business, get in touch here.