When Andrew Eck graduated from Mercer University in 2016 with a degree in electrical engineering, he never imagined that his pastime would turn into a lifelong career in furniture making.
“I kind of stumbled into it with a friend of mine. We started building coffee tables out of pallets, and it was a really cheap way to build something and sell it,” he said. It had almost zero cost to it. We were able to basically just sell our labor and build low-quality coffee tables. And it slowly evolved into bigger and better things.”
Now, Eck is the owner and operator of Georgia Artisan. With a 20,000-square-foot warehouse and a staff of about 20 people, Georgia Artisan uses reclaimed wood from demolished homes in Macon to create handcrafted, high-quality furniture. Initially, Eck was drawn to the idea of being self-employed and running his own business but found a love for the hands-on process of carpentry.
“It wasn’t like I just dreamed about building furniture one day. In fact, I didn’t really need a background in it. I just kind of learned on the job, one step at a time. It was like, OK, well, can we do a dining room table? Can we do this? Can we do that?’ And just kind of going from there,” he said. “So, I’d say entrepreneurship is more so what I’m really drawn towards, which is kind of taking risks and working for yourself.”
While Eck originally began creating furniture from wood pallets, he found the wood often had limited versatility. After a pilot run demolishing a house for Habitat for Humanity, Eck saw the wood from older homes in Macon was a type of virgin pine that is difficult to find due to the practices of modern-day tree farming. Its rarity, historical significance and unique appearance give Georgia Artisan’s furniture special character.
“The wood itself has a different look and different quality to it. And it’s irreplaceable. That’s the cool part about it. People like the aspect that, OK, I’m buying a table where the wood has been around for over 100 years,’” said Eck. “So, it has a story that we can imprint on it.”
In addition to creating sustainable furniture, Eck prioritizes creating skilled carpenters on his staff. He exclusively hires workers with no prior experience and trains them to become carpenters who are competitive in the workforce.
“It’s really fun to take someone that has no skill at all, and after six months, they’re a junior carpenter, and then after 18 months, they’re a full-blown carpenter and could be running the place,” he said.
Although his degree wasn’t in business, Eck said his time at Mercer gave him the chance to access opportunities that helped him begin his career in entrepreneurship.
“I think Mercer does a really good job at making you well-rounded. And it’s everything that’s not the classes. It’s the connection to Macon and some of its entrepreneurs there,” Eck said. “I got mentorship by other business owners my senior year in college, and that was very helpful too. I think it was definitely helpful to be able to say, ‘Hey, I’m a Mercer student trying to do this. Can we meet?’ I think that has a lot of weight in town.”
Georgia Artisan has delivered to nearly every state in the country, with Eck sometimes hand delivering items himself. He said the economic and environmental sustainability of turning discarded, vintage wood into high-quality furniture is one of the things that will keep Georgia Artisan running efficiently.
To Eck, purchasing furniture is one of the biggest decisions people will make in their lifetime. Whether it’s furniture that enhances a room or creates a space for people to spend time together, he hopes Georgia Artisan will continue to create pieces that will last families for generations.
“You’re buying good furniture when you’re a professional, just about to have kids, just made it and have a little bit of income. You have kids, you go a long time without anything new, and then the kids move out, and then you buy something again. You’re talking about two, maybe three times in your lifetime that you’re buying something,” Eck said. “My hope is that we create honest, high-quality furniture that they can be proud of and that they can pass on to their kids in 30-plus years.”
Andrew Eck is among the Mercerians featured in Mercer Illustrated: The Places, People, and Experiences of a Uniquely Impactful University. This coffee table book from Mercer University Press can be ordered online. Mercer faculty, staff and students can receive a 40% discount when they order by phone at (478) 301-2880.
