45 Years Later County Business Remains Committed to Locally Made in Addison County using local materials and local craftspeople.
Vermont Business Magazine 1979 saw the Three Mile Island nuclear accident, the Russian invasion of Afghanistan, and the election of Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, in Vermont the first modern snowboard was going on sale, and in Lincoln, Vermont, Maple Landmark Woodcraft was founded by Mike Rainville.
Rainville came by his attraction to create things out of wood naturally, as he often helped when his grandparents were building houses or sheds. Their keen minds, Yankee Ingenuity, and frugality taught Mike the importance of focusing on local resources.
While the last 45 years have brought an abundance of changes, the importance of local resources is even stronger than ever. Utilizing local raw materials, employing local craftspeople and being as self-reliant as possible, “..helps to insulate us from supply chain issues, world and national disruptions like COVID, and puts us closer to our customers both locally and nationally,” commented owner Mike Rainville.
During this anniversary month Maple Landmark is celebrating local by offering 25% off everything in the factory store in Middlebury. Shoppers can also stop by and nominate their favorite pre-school, library, or day care center to win $200 of Maple Landmark products.
Currently Maple Landmark employs over 40 people and sells product to a couple thousand gift shops and toy stores throughout the country and abroad. Our product is readily available on the internet as well. We have become the pre-eminent wooden toy manufacturer in the United States.
We were never only about toys and that holds true today. The fastest growing portion of our business is custom work. We use our capabilities to meet the needs of a couple hundred companies and institutions. Custom products start with items like you’ll see in the custom section on this site and extend into completely custom built store displays, component parts, tap handles and other items that fit our processes.
The next chapter of Maple Landmark began in 2014 when Mike and Jill’s older son Adam joined the company after graduating from Clarkson University. Younger son Andrew joined in 2017 after graduating Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Adam specializes in production management and Andrew is responsible for communications. Both have a short learning curve as they have been involved ever since they were born.
Source: 7.22.2024. Middlebury, VT – Maple Landmark https://www.maplelandmark.com/
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