Lakes States Business Trends 2025 – From Lacking And Abnormal To Fairly Decent, It’s A Mixed Region
Two out of three hardwood lumber sources in the Lake States region agree on abundant transportation and a poor market, while one reported trucking troubles and another reported a decent market and stability.
The market is “fairly decent,” according to a lumber source in Wisconsin and “about the same” as six months ago.
They handle Red and White Oak, Hard and Soft Maple, Basswood, Aspen, Hickory and Cherry in 4/4. Most of their production is Hard and Soft Maple and Red and White Oak. They also work with Red Oak in 5/4, and White Oak is the bestseller.
Their customers, distribution yards and end users, said their markets aren’t “booming by any means, but they are getting orders,” he added.
Transportation is not negatively affecting the source’s business.
One lumber representative commented the market is “okay” in Michigan. “It seems like we have a couple of good days followed by a so-so week. It’s a roller-coaster. We don’t experience a slowdown usually until Thanksgiving. So, this is abnormal.
“It’s a little worse than it was six months ago,” he stated. “It starts out pretty good but slows down around the fourth of July and picks back up at the end of the summer when people get back to work. It hasn’t really come back since the summer slowdown this year. There is room for improvement.”
Their main species are Hard and Soft Maple and Red and White Oak. “We also offer Cherry, Hickory, Walnut and occasionally Poplar.” At the time of this report, he added that “a month ago,” his best sellers were “White Oak and Hard Maple, but we have had a lot of uptick in Red Oak. It’s hard to say which is selling more right now.” These species are sold in 4/4 to 8/4 and 10/4 or 12/4 in Hard Maple on occasion.
“The four big ones,” he said when asked about his clients, are “distribution, flooring, cabinet and millwork companies. Out of all the guys I talk to, the residential flooring guys are the worst because their markets seem pretty slow.”
He noted the dry weather in his area has been good for logging and that transportation isn’t an issue.
The market is “down in a big way and we are small right now,” reported one lumber source from Minnesota who sells products across the U.S.
She said they “do all domestic species” and listed Red and White Oak, Hickory, Maple and Walnut as examples. The White Oak is their bestseller. They handle those species in grades and thicknesses such as Select & Better, rift and quartered, 3/4, 5/8 and 1/2 inch.
Distributors are their only customers and they “haven’t said much about their markets,” she added.
“Trucking is pretty hard for us because of our location and many people don’t realize it,” she said. “We have a couple of local carriers and I’m even having trouble getting them to show up.”
