The Softwood Forest Products Buyer - March/April 2024

MILLER LUMBER —Continued from page 51
as various engineered lumber and composite decking.
The lumberyard sits on five acres with two enclosed warehouses that store their
Cedar, Cypress and Pine pattern materials: and some free-standing, open sheds to
house Pine dimensional, Spruce and plywood. The company handles its large inventory
with three delivery trucks with forklifts attached and three forklifts on the yard.
“We have a storage capacity of around 600,000 board feet and usually keep an
inventory of around 400,000 – 500,000 board feet,” Walters said.
According to Walters, operations are handled by nine employees total who all
invest in the value of face-to-face business.
“I enjoy interacting with the people, we have a lot of retail walk-in business,”
Walters explained. “I'm still very much a part of that. I sit at the counter and greet
people just like the other two sales guys do, in addition to my other responsibilities.
So, getting to interact with a variety of people daily, see different people, new
people and forge relationships is just something we value every day.”
Miller Lumber’s unique offerings remain a strong sell for their market even if
competing against tough commodity markets. The company’s focus is to keep a
larger quantity of Cypress, Cedar, treated Pine and pattern Pine than most of their
competitors.
Mills and wholesalers supply Miller Lumber with their inventory which they buy
From left are Tim Stevens and Frankie Marshall, who deliver materials all over the
state and pick up material at mills. They are often the only face-to-face interaction
a customer may have with Miller Lumber.
Miller Lumber of Jackson, MS has been a family-owned lumber and building materials
business since 1953.
From left are Malcom Chaney, Joe Pickering, and Otis Hunt. Pickering leads the
yard staff with more than 30 years in the building materials industry.
From left are Jim Jones, inside sales, and Mike Anderson, inside sales manager.
Miller Lumber owner Alan Walters noted that the company “prides ourselves on
our sales staff being the friendliest and most knowledgeable in the area.” Anderson
brings over 30 years of experience in the building materials and hardware
industry and is well liked by every customer that walks through the door. Jones is
relatively new to the lumber industry but brings a wealth of knowledge in dealing
with people from his experience in law enforcement over the years.
in dimensions of 2x4 through 2x12, up to 24 foot in length of Pine; 1x4 through
1x12 and 2x4 through 2x12 Cypress; plywood in various grades including threeeighths
through three-quarter; seven-sixteenths OSB; and 1x4 through 1x12 Pine.
“We try to be very competitive, price-wise,” Walters explained. “We try and
make sure we've got good availability, we've always had a very, very good staff
from both working inside, being knowledgeable and helpful to those guys on the
outside, our truck drivers to our folks in the yard. The guys we got here working
now, outside and in the trucks, are extremely knowledgeable, helpful, good with
people and are going to put forth the extra effort to make sure that everybody that
comes here has a good positive experience.”
Continued on page 54
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