HW Chair grew from a simple effort to make better use of every piece of hardwood.

The company’s roots stretch back to 1973, when Mahlon Hochstetler retired from farming and began woodworking as a hobby. He started by building cabinetry, but customers soon began asking for tabletops, stair parts, and other furniture components. Mahlon’s son Eli continued working at his day job, while Eli’s five sons began working alongside their grandfather in the shop. As demand grew, the small family operation developed into a multigenerational woodworking business.

By the early 1980s, the company was producing more tabletops and millwork. However, not every board was large enough for those products. Rather than allowing the smaller pieces of quality hardwood to go unused, the family began searching for something useful they could build from them. Since nearly every home needs seating, HW Chair was established in 1984.

That resourceful beginning still shapes the company today. HW Chair is part of a vertically integrated operation that controls nearly every stage of production. The family owns timberland where sustainable forestry practices are used and promoted. Its forestry team manages and selectively harvests and plants trees, which are then utilized in products we manufacture.

This control over the process is one of HW Chair’s greatest strengths. HW Chair has the equipment to manufacture a wide range of parts in-house. Its capabilities also extend beyond residential chairs to furniture components, store fixtures, hospitality furnishings, and other commercial and institutional projects.

The company began with traditional chair designs, including bow-back and Mission styles. As customer preferences changed, its collection expanded to include Shaker, contemporary, and mid-century modern chairs. Rather than trying to predict every trend, the company listens closely to dealers and customers, studies their feedback, and develops designs around what people are actually requesting.

More than fifty years after the original shop opened, HW Chair continues to combine traditional woodworking knowledge with broad manufacturing capabilities. What began as a way to make better use of smaller hardwood boards has grown into a business capable of producing everything from individual chair parts to commercial orders. Through careful forest management, practical problem-solving, and generations of family experience, HW Chair continues building furniture with lasting purpose and value.