ROGERS - Customers have to be determined to visit the shop where Two Brothers canoes are made.
Located in rural Benton County, co-owner Louis Shaw has to direct visitors by phone, talking them over dirt roads, washouts and through tricky turns to find the place. Once there, potential customers are greeted by two farm dogs who bark but are otherwise friendly.
Louis Shaw, 35, tall and clean shaven, is the paddler. Brother and co-owner William Shaw, 48, bearded, and chatty concerning all things technical, is the talent behind their manufacturing process.
Inside the high-roofed workshop, red canoes made of a multilayered plastic composite called Royalex gleam. These are Two Brothers Canoe Inc.’s Arkota models, 16-foot canoes designed for the seasoned paddling enthusiast. The boats, built to be nimble and quick in fast moving water, sell for $1,100.
In the summer, Two Brothers say they’ll release their latest canoe, the Nomad. It will be strong, light and stable - an all-purpose craft aimed at new canoe owners and the outfitters who ply the Buffalo, Mulberry, Big Piney and Elk rivers.
“We’ve had to turn down business because we didn’t really have a general-purpose boat,” Louis Shaw said.
Canoe sales nationally have been flat recently, according to data provided by the National Marine Manufacturers Association. Sales in 2011, the most recent the association had available, were $37 million with 77,100 canoes sold at an average cost of $482, up less than 1 percent from 2010 and with cost unchanged. A decade ago, total retail value for all canoes sold was $57 million, with 105,800 sold with an average value of $543.
In overall sales, kayaks dwarf canoes, according to the association’s data. In 2011, there were 234,800 kayaks sold with a total value of$124 million and an average cost of $526.
Both segments saw declines when the recession hit in 2009 but are making slow gains.
The canoe segment “is a small niche, but it’s also a very active community,” said Ellen Hopkins, vice president of communications for the association.
Louis Shaw said kayak sales, in particular the open types that can be purchased fairly inexpensively at big box stores, have gained in popularity, but canoes are important for those interested in carrying gear and passengers.
The brothers initially focused building a product for serious canoeists, and the hard-core paddling community responded favorably. That acceptance gave the Shaws the confidence to move forward with the Nomad.
“If we had been turned away from that market, we would have had to rethink,” Louis Shaw said.
Buffalo Canoes in Jasper has been building canoes for about 25 years. Owner Harold Gordon said the company hasn’t produced canoes recently because materials like Royalex have been hard to obtain, but he plans to build some boats later this year.
He said his market is typically canoe outfitters. Buffalo Canoes also sells to individuals through its website. In a good year, the company built and sold more than 75 canoes, Gordon said.
Two Brothers Canoe has been making canoes since 2006 and has been operating out of the Benton County shop for less than two years. William Shaw used his skill with fiberglass to puzzle through the arcane process of making canoes.
“It was a lot of trial and error, but from every single error we learned something,” said William.
They have a huge electric oven that heats a large Royalex sheet to just the right temperature. Then the canoe is vacuum-formed using a special mold. The forming process takes about 15 seconds.
The Arkota models are fitted with gunnels and wooden hardware - including seats, yokes and grab handles all made of ash. Boats can be taken for a spin on nearby Beaver Lake or borrowed for the weekend to fully test their capabilities.
The brothers both work day jobs and have not taken any profits from the company so far. They’ve plowed all their earnings back into the business and are debt free, they say. The company sells and promotes its canoes on its website and Facebook page. So far, they’ve made about 80 boats.
Mike Mills of Buffalo Outdoor Center in Ponca said there is a market for a durable, entry-level canoe. He said the ability to produce strong and affordable canoes, and make them in numbers, will be key to Two Brothers Canoe attracting outfitters, a niche commonly called the livery business.
Mills’ business has been renting canoes to Buffalo National River visitors since 1976. His operation runs a fleet of 99 canoes along with kayaks and rafts. He generally sells 25 to 30 used canoes each year and replaces them with new craft.
Livery boats take a lot of punishment, Mills said, making Royalex the preferred material. After three to five years of livery use, an average boat would see as much wear and tear as a standard canoe would in 25 years or more of general use.
“The livery business is hard on a boat,” he said.
Brad Wimberly has owned and managed Turner Bend Outfitters, located north of Ozark on the Mulberry River, for 32 years. He said he’s familiar with Two Brothers Canoe and he’d be interested in seeing the Nomad in action.
“They make a really good canoe,” he said.
Turner Bend Outfitters has a fleet of 60 canoes and replaces about a fourth of them every year. This year, the operation didn’t replace any boats since business was so slow in 2012 because of dry weather.
Shipping is a big concern when buying livery boats, Wimberly said, so having a local supplier helps tremendously. He said shipping costs can run more than $100 a canoe.
Both Mills and Wimberly said there is a niche to fill as a supplier to the region’s livery businesses, and Two Brothers Canoe could meet that need if they can make enough robust boats at the right price.
Louis Shaw said there are no economies of scale with raw materials, so it costs him the same to buy Royalex as it would a major manufacturer.
“That was the moment I realized we could be competitive in this field,” he said.
The Nomad’s price will be similar to the Arkota’s, though eventually the wooden seats and accessories could be replaced with plastic and aluminum to lower the price.
William Shaw said they could increase production if the new line takes off, building as many as 10 canoes a day if they hire some extra help.
As the brothers talk, rain drums on the shop’s roof, making it almost impossible to be heard.
“We like the sound of rain,” said Louis, nearly yelling.
Somewhere nearby streams and rivers are filling and paddlers are smiling.
Business, Pages 67 on 05/26/2013