Meet the makers
Joiner Ben Taylor on oak, recycling and the motivational power of Queen
Ben is not afraid to get low-down and dirty at Rawside, especially it's all for a good cause.
Why Rawside?
"I've been working for Rawside for six months, my first job in the UK. I was a joiner in Australia and I lucked out to be able to do that right here in London when i moved here. Yes it's a factory, but there's still a lot of detail that needs finishing by hand, which is what I've always loved. It's just good to make stuff, people don't do that enough it seems these days."
"It's also good to have a challenge in that, not only do we design and make our own stuff here, not importing it from a remote location, we're always thinking of new ways to make what we do as 'clean' as possible. We're in a potentially very wasteful industry, and think you've got to be aware of that. So we have a range of products that use all those offcuts we create, which is great coming up with ways to make sure none of that stuff is just getting chucked. Even the stuff we can't use ends up heating the factory."
Office politics
"It's funny there's a factory right in central South London, and we're all different nationalities and backgrounds so it's a fun mix. Only politics might be about the music we play, one of the things that was important to install was the sound system. Weirdly Queen is a real motivator when it's on, we seem to work a lot faster when one of their tracks comes on. When the Polish guys stick their stuff on? Not so much maybe."
Home project?
"If I wanted something Rawside for home, something personal, I think it would be one of our Bad Boy tables for the kitchen, nice bit of reclaimed oak. Great wood to work on, but also tough, nice that reclaimed looks a bit 'lived in' rather than some show piece. Probably make some shelves to match too, in a London flat, storage is always at a bit of a premium!
Still decision isn't really mine, as the boss, my girlfriend will have final say, but I reckon I can convince her."
“Finally companies are becoming wary of the impact on both the environment and the community.
I love it that we’re always thinking about how to be better”