About Us
It all started with a cutting board and a desire to make cool things out of wood.
BirchBarn Designs is a homegrown brand that was born out of a love for backyard hangs, house parties, thoughtful gift-giving, and cool products that last. Inside a garage that had a barn-like feel, Matt Swanson, head carpenter and founder, designed and built a few cutting boards in a rainbow assortment of hardwoods for friends as gifts. The eye-catching and functional boards caught the interest of neighbors and friends who wanted one of their own. Over a decade later, the business that began under the watch of a birch tree and included a limited line of cutting boards and barware, has become a custom carpentry business that designs and creates wood countertops, tables, shelving, stools, benches, as well as a four-tier product line - Chop, Serve, Drink + Live.
Alongside his wife Shelley, who oversees client and online operations, this Scituate couple has curated a product line that is crafted with hand-chosen domestic and exotic hardwoods that can be engraved and personalized with a monogram, last name or memorable date. Everything they sell, they use at their own home.
BirchBarn Designs is dedicated to creating quality products made out of hardwood that last a lifetime, giving back to the community that has embraced them, and introducing other products that add a little more fun to their best days.
Behind the Barndoors
Matt Swanson, head carpenter and founder, was a contractor and passionate creator before he founded BirchBarn Designs. Matt and his wife Shelley began laying down roots on the coast of Massachusetts in 2013 when he purchased some used woodworking equipment and started making cutting boards in a rainbow assortment of hardwoods inside their garage. A pretty on brand move for the guy who would build a table for the party if it meant he could invite more people. The first colorful board was a wedding gift for a friend. He made a few more for friends and word got around about the boards, which led him to hit up the local farmers market circuit as a vendor. Shelley, a marketing executive in Boston, would join Matt at the markets on the weekends as the product line grew and they began receiving custom orders.
A homegrown operation inside their garage churned out customized cutting boards, beer flights, bottle openers, and eventually the business received a request to create a countertop in 2015. The neighbors, friends and family that would show up at the garage to buy artisan wood products set the stage for a business that now takes orders across the country and internationally, while still being a destination for locals.
Those humble early days when neighbors would show up at the garage to buy gifts remain a motivating force for the couple as they continue to grow the family business.
“We always wanted to be a business that gave back to the community that we had fallen in love with. Matt wanted BirchBarn to be a place where you brought your out-of-state relatives to buy made-in Scituate artisan gifts,” said Shelley.
“It was so flattering when our customers came to our garage to buy gifts. There would be parents with strollers and lots of our neighbors. We have the best customers. I can remember this one teenager who bought personalized gifts from us each year. I thought it was pretty cool that a young guy was so thoughtful,” said Matt.
It's a Family Affair
BirchBarn Design is a family business run by Matt and Shelley Swanson inside a workshop and showroom space within the coastal Massachusetts community they live in and love to be a part of.
If he's not in the shop, you can find Matt...
- Building forts & Legos with his daughter
- Splitting wood in the backyard
- Reconfiguring his "smart home" automation
If she's not in the shop, you can find Shelley...
- Enjoying arts & crafts with her daughter
- Lounging on the beach
- Embroidering gifts for family & friends
Chronicle 5 WCVB
Peek behind the barn doors with Anthony Everett and the team at Chronicle!
