What Does Mill Direct Mean?
If you are new in the industry or are a homeowner looking to buy some materials for a home renovation, you have probably heard the term “Mill Direct”. Depending on the supplier you are working with, they might get their products directly from the mill which allows them to offer you some perks to make your experience better. There are many different benefits to a supplier getting their products from a mill rather than a middleman. We want to introduce you to the idea of buying from suppliers who directly with mills and what the benefits of buying from these suppliers are.
What is a mill?
Let’s start with what a mill is: a mill is a place that specializes in preparing wood materials to be re-sold. They take the wood once it is sourced and put it through a process that cleans it, smooths it down, cuts it to size, and prepares it to be appearance lumber.
Who do mills work with?
Mills works with two different kinds of people. They work with a supplier who gets the product directly from them at a discounted price. They also work with middlemen who get the product from the mill and sell it to the suppliers. This is how big box stores work- they get their product from the middleman and then resell it.
Here at Rocky Mountain Forest Products, we get most of our products directly from the mill, which allows us a few different benefits as opposed to big box stores. Let’s start with the price savings!
Benefit #1 – Pricing
Because we buy our product directly from the mill, we pay a cheaper price which means we can sell it to you for a lower price than other stores. The biggest reason why prices can get so high in stores like Home Depot and Lowes is that they go through several different people before they can get their product. The costs of the materials and transportation add up quickly, which causes them to have to mark up their price.
Benefit #2 – Quality Control
Another great benefit of buying the product directly from the mill is that we get to choose the quality of the product we get. If we want a certain quality of fencing, we can tell our mill that and get that product no issue. Bigger stores don’t get to choose the level of quality their products are, which means you don’t know if you’re getting a lower quality product or a higher one.
Benefit #3 – Custom Orders
By working with the mill directly, we can request certain products to be cut a certain way or even for a certain material to be found if needed. Every now and then in our industry, we will get a client with a unique order and they might need a specific profile, color, or species that we don’t normally carry. We can get in contact with our mill and get that specific product without any issue.
Benefit #4 – Variety
Because we work so closely with our mills, we always have a high stock amount and a variety of our products. This way our customers will always be able to find what they need and get their hands on it fast. No one wants to wait for the product to come in, you want to get your renovation started as fast as you can. We also have more options available to us so we can help you customize your design to the exact specifications you need.
Working directly with mills not only benefits us as a supplier, but it also benefits our customers. We are able to offer you more high quality and sound products for your renovation. As a homeowner, you want the renovation process to be easy, stress-free, and affordable. We understand that and make sure to take all things into account when working with you during your renovation. You can sit down with a specialist and talk out all the logistics before starting the process officially, so you are informed and comfortable with everything happening. Check out our website for more info and reach out to start your renovation today!
