For two local businesses serving the Foothills it can be a tough go at succeeding in the business world. But if you work together your chances of success rise.

That's the case for 2 Birds Furniture and All Through The House owners Clinton Pigeon and Monika McLachlan tearing down a vintage dairy barn near Gladys Ridge.

(left-right) Workers delicately taking apart an old dairy barn built in 1932

2 Birds deals with large furniture items with barnwood or new wood while All Through The House works closer with rustic antiques, salvage items, tools, garden & farm antiques. Both coming from the same concept.

McLachlan says in this day and age you have to work together and not try and go in alone.

"We like to compliment each other, I like the little stuff, the little pieces of barnwood and the extra things that you find in the barn," she says.  Pigeon adds, "we like structures, we like the 2x6, the beams and the heavy pieces to build furniture with."

With the Alberta economy in dire straits at times, Pigeon says you have to be creative to stay busy.

"I think the new way of business is collaboration, especially in this industry it's all about if you don't have something because you have scarcity so it's all about if you can help them and help each other and help your client at the end of the day," he says. McLachlan adds, "If I can't or don't have what customers want then I know where to get the material that they want," she adds.

McLachlan says working together with 2 Birds Furniture hasn't just helped her business but also vice versa.

"How can you send people your way when you don't know, so you really have to know what's in inventory and who has it in stock. We have hardware and knobs but they don't really carry that but they have them available there and they buy them off of us."

The dairy barn currently being torn down by McLachlan and Pigeon was built back in 1931 but was moved to it's current location in 1982.

 

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