Rare Woods USA
Rare Woods USA LLC is a privately held exotic lumber retailer founded in 1982 in Mexico, Maine. It sells over 100 wood species sourced from 40+ countries via e-commerce and a physical showroom, serving woodworkers, craftsmen, and small architectural projects.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1982
- HeadquartersMexico, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Rare Woods USA does
Rare Woods USA LLC is a privately held exotic and specialty lumber retailer founded in 1982 and headquartered at 120 Swift River Road, Mexico, Maine. The company sources lumber from over 40 countries and lists more than 100 wood species, with an inventory exceeding 500,000 board feet. It sells individual pieces (rough sawn boards, live-edged boards, rustic boards), pre-cut sizes (turning squares, bowl blanks, pen blanks, instrument wood, knife wood), bundled lumber packs, and gift cards, serving primarily professional and hobbyist woodworkers, craftsmen, and small architectural or interior design projects.
The company's notable technical capability is a thermally modified ("roasted") wood process: lumber is heated above 160°C in stainless steel heat chambers under anoxic conditions to remove organic compounds, producing a chemical-free, dimensionally stable chocolatey brown product (e.g., Roasted Flame Birch) suitable for flooring, tabletops, panels, and cladding. The underlying platform is a direct e-commerce storefront with search filters by species, size, thickness, type, and price, supplemented by an educational Species Discovery tool, a customer creation showcase, and a showroom that supports in-person visits.
Commercially, Rare Woods USA operates on a one-time transaction revenue model with unit pricing (individual pieces roughly $15-$125, turning blanks $2-$67, lumber packs around $275 per 20 BF, gift cards with a $40 minimum). Free shipping is offered to the lower 48 US states on orders over $100, with a 46-inch length limit and a $12 over-length surcharge. Wholesale quantities are available for selected species, and the go-to-market motion is self-serve e-commerce supported by content marketing, an email newsletter, and customer community galleries.
Rare Woods USA firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Rare Woods USA
- Legal name
- Rare Woods USA LLC
- Website
- https://rarewoodsusa.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1982
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Rare Woods USA LLC is a privately held exotic lumber retailer founded in 1982 in Mexico, Maine. It sells over 100 wood species sourced from 40+ countries via e-commerce and a physical showroom, serving woodworkers, craftsmen, and small architectural projects.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Rare Woods USA industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Exotic Lumber Retail
- NAICS
- Lumber, Plywood, Millwork, and Wood Panel Merchant Wholesalers (42331)
- SIC
- Wholesale-Lumber, Plywood, Millwork & Wood Panels (5031), Retail-Lumber & Other Building Materials Dealers (5211)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Softwood Lumber Distribution & Trading (IMAMAIAA)
Keywords
Where Rare Woods USA is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Mexico
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Rare Woods USA business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- E-commerce Lumber Sales: One-time transaction sales of exotic and domestic lumber products through online storefront. Products include rough sawn boards, live edged boards, pre-cut sizes (turning squares, bowl blanks, pen blanks), and lumber packs. Prices range from approximately $15 to $125+ per item depending on species, grade, and dimensions.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Individual Pieces - Various lumber products priced per item |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Lumber Packs - Bulk quantities |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Gift Cards |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Pre-cut Sizes - Turning wood and blanks |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
Rare Woods USA product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Rare Woods USA is an exotic and specialty lumber retailer operating an e-commerce storefront and a physical showroom in Mexico, Maine. The company sells individual lumber pieces (rough sawn, live edged, rustic boards), pre-cut sizes (turning squares, bowl blanks, pen blanks, instrument wood, knife wood), and bundled lumber packs across more than 100 species sourced from over 40 countries, with in-house thermal wood modification (roasting) capability.
Product overview
Rare Woods USA is an exotic lumber retailer offering over 100 species of lumber sourced from over 40 countries. The company operates as an e-commerce platform with physical showroom, selling individual lumber pieces (rough sawn boards, live edged boards, rustic boards), pre-cut sizes (turning squares, bowl blanks, pen blanks, instrument wood, knife wood), and lumber packs. Key specialty products include East Indian Satinwood, Roasted Flame Birch (thermally modified), Masur Birch, and Bubinga. The company also offers gift cards. All products are available through their online shop with free shipping to lower 48 states on orders over $100.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Exotic Lumber - Individual Pieces Individual pieces of exotic lumber including rough sawn boards, live edged boards, and rustic boards sold in various dimensions and grades, targeting woodworkers and hobbyists purchasing single boards for projects.
- Pre-cut Sizes Pre-cut lumber pieces including turning squares, bowl blanks, pen blanks, instrument wood, and knife wood in various dimensions, intended for turners and instrument/knife makers needing standardized blanks.
- Lumber Packs Bundled lumber packs offering wholesale quantities of various exotic wood species for bulk buyers and serious hobbyists.
- East Indian Satinwood Chloroxylon swietenia tropical hardwood with golden yellow heartwood, prized for chatoyance and silky satin sheen, sourced from East India/Ceylon and offered in quartersawn stock.
- Roasted Flame Birch Thermally modified Flame Birch heated to greater than 160 degrees Celsius, producing rich chocolatey brown coloring while maintaining grain figure, with improved dimensional stability for flooring, tops, panels, and cladding.
- Masur Birch Birch species known for its mottled appearance, offered as exotic lumber for woodworkers seeking visually distinctive material.
- Bubinga Exotic hardwood known for its colors and chatoyance, available in wholesale stock for fine woodworking and specialty projects.
- Gift Cards Digital gift cards available in minimum $40 denominations, deliverable automatically to a recipient's inbox and usable online or in-store.
Companies that use Rare Woods USA
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Rare Woods USA technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Rare Woods USA partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Rare Woods USA competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Cook Woods: Specialty exotic lumber retailer offering individual boards and turning blanks online, overlapping directly with Rare Woods' individual-piece and pre-cut size SKUs.
- Woodworkers Source: Specialty hardwood lumber retailer with both online and physical showrooms, carrying domestic and exotic species — directly comparable assortment and customer profile.
- Certainly Wood: Specialty wood retailer focused on figured and burl woods for turning and instrument making — directly comparable niche positioning and customer base.
- Advantage Lumber: Online specialty lumber retailer offering domestic and tropical hardwoods to woodworkers and small businesses, competing on similar SKU breadth and shipping model.
- Hearne Hardwoods: Pennsylvania-based exotic and domestic hardwood lumber dealer selling to hobbyists and professionals — a long-standing direct competitor in the premium/specialty hardwood niche.
- Bell Forest Products: Online specialty/exotic hardwood lumber retailer with a wide species catalog and direct-to-consumer shipping — the closest functional competitor to Rare Woods USA's e-commerce exotic lumber model.
- Exotic Hardwoods & Veneers: Specialty exotic hardwood and veneer supplier serving fine woodworking customers — comparable species coverage and customer use cases.
Regional players
- Forest Products Associates: Specialty hardwood lumber and veneer distributor with a more regional/wholesale orientation — comparable product category but different go-to-market mix relative to Rare Woods' consumer-centric e-commerce.
Broad incumbents
- Rockler Woodworking and Hardware: Multi-channel woodworking retailer with stores and e-commerce; carries some specialty lumber among a broad hardware and tool catalog — overlapping only partially with Rare Woods' core exotic lumber focus.
- Woodcraft: National woodworking supplies retailer offering a smaller exotic lumber selection alongside tools, finishes, and machinery — competes for the same woodworker customer wallet but with a much wider, non-lumber core assortment.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Rare Woods USA social profiles
Digital presenceRare Woods USA financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Rare Woods USA leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Rare Woods USA funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Rare Woods USA M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Rare Woods USA
What does Rare Woods USA do?
Rare Woods USA is an exotic and specialty lumber retailer operating an e-commerce storefront and a physical showroom in Mexico, Maine. The company sells individual lumber pieces (rough sawn, live edged, rustic boards), pre-cut sizes (turning squares, bowl blanks, pen blanks, instrument wood, knife wood), and bundled lumber packs across more than 100 species sourced from over 40 countries, with in-house thermal wood modification (roasting) capability.
Is Rare Woods USA a public or private company?
Rare Woods USA is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Rare Woods USA founded?
Rare Woods USA was founded in 1982. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Rare Woods USA based?
Rare Woods USA is headquartered in Mexico, United States, in the North America region.
How does Rare Woods USA make money?
One revenue line is on record: E-commerce Lumber Sales.
Who are Rare Woods USA's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Cook Woods, Woodworkers Source, Certainly Wood, Advantage Lumber, Hearne Hardwoods, Bell Forest Products and Exotic Hardwoods & Veneers. Forest Products Associates is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Rockler Woodworking and Hardware and Woodcraft.
Does Rare Woods USA have an API?
No public API is recorded for Rare Woods USA.
What industry is Rare Woods USA in?
Rare Woods USA's product category is Exotic Lumber Retail. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAMAIAA, Softwood Lumber Distribution & Trading. Its NAICS code is 42331 and its SIC code is 5031.