2024 Readers' Choice Winner - Best Home Improvement

WRITTEN BY CHARLOTTE GRIFFIN | PHOTOGRAPHY BY BOBBY BEDIENT

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A Long-Standing Tradition Of Service To The People Of Fayette County

Farmers Lumber Company has been a valued contributor to Fayette County for a long time. Walt Jackson, Farmers Lumber general manager, has a picture of the original lumberyard from 1890 hung in his office. Back then, trains delivered lumber to town. The tracks are still visible underneath the asphalt on Jackson Street and in the old barn. Farmers Lumber Company was incorporated in 1907. The original hardware store was in the lumber barn with a storefront on Jackson Street. Much has changed over the years, with modern metal lumber buildings being added along with the current hardware store in 2000. Over the years the goal has remained the same, “to always have available what our customers need.”

Walt Jackson and his family made Fayette County their permanent home in 2019. However, Walt is not new to the area. He and his family have owned property in Muldoon for over 40 years. He enjoyed the area and would work on the property during the weekends. With limited time on weekends, Farmers Lumber Company became his “go-to store” because they had all the hardware and building supplies at one stop. . Walt continued, “We know our customers feel the same way. Our slogan is “We have everything you need…EVERYTHING!” 

Living and working in Houston, Walt studied mechanical engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. There was no bypass when traveling from Houston to Austin driving through La Grange. “I remember driving through and admiring the beautiful courthouse and thinking what a neat town La Grange must be,” said Walt. After graduation, work pulled Walt back to Houston where he spent 35 years working in the power generation and oil and gas industries. He has owned and managed many companies and is an experienced business professional with an extensive background in management consulting.

After retiring from the oil and gas industry in Houston, Walt moved to Muldoon, taking a retail sales position at Lowes. In 2019, Walt joined Farmers Lumber Company. His main goal was to continue to improve the company by bringing in proven industry practices, while growing the business and keeping the hometown values. He worked at applying “The customer comes first’’ principle through the changing business climate. 

Like every other business, COVID had an impact on Farmers Lumber Company. In 2020, when businesses were shut down, Farmers was classified as an essential business which allowed the company to continue operating and serving the customers of Fayette County. The supply chain was severely interrupted, and the main vendors struggled to keep up with customer demand. Farmers worked hard to find other suppliers to keep products on the shelves and in the lumber yard. This had a positive impact on the business model going forward and has become the way vendors are managed today. Now, Farmers relies on many suppliers to keep products on the shelves and prices competitive. They keep higher inventory levels than most businesses of similar size. “Our contractors may need more than what we can stock on our shelves, so we keep extra inventory in our warehouse to meet their needs. We continue to add new products based on customer interests like whole house generators, freeze dryers, and water filter systems. These have all been great additions to the store, and customers appreciate the expertise we provide with product details. At last count, we have sold 46 Harvest Right freeze dryers, with customers driving from Houston, San Antonio, and Austin to buy their freeze dryers from us.” Walt explained.

Farmers is a full-service lumber yard. Walt stated, “We can load at the store or deliver to your property. With fullservice delivery capabilities, our piggy-back style delivery truck can safely place your lumber where you need it. Many of our building packages go out within 24 hours of the order being placed while some deliveries go to locations that require our forklift to get the order to the building site.”

With strong continued growth and the company’s openness to expanding through acquisition, the right opportunity surfaced. In April of 2022, Farmers Lumber Company purchased Round Top Mercantile. Farmers immediately added a new barn to bring lumber to the Round Top area. Round Top continues to be one of the fastest growing zip codes in Fayette County. To support the growth, Farmers is expanding offerings at the Mercantile. “The demographics are changing, and we are reviewing new vendors and services to meet the demands of the changing community. We have some exciting new developments in the works for the store and look forward to rolling them out soon!” Walt shared.

The Mercantile is an authorized Stihl dealer with a full-service repair shop. “Our mechanics work on Stihl and most Outdoor Power Equipment (OPE). If you have any questions about your equipment or services, store manager JB Cravens can assist with all customer requests,” Walt said. With the acquisition, Farmers brought the Stihl OPE line to the La Grange store. It has been a powerful addition with their trained and knowledgeable sales staff assisting customers with the right Stihl product for their job.

Farmers has the latest paint-matching technology with a fullservice paint department. It continues to be one of the biggest growth areas for Farmers Lumber Company. Donald Roensch has been with Farmers Lumber for 43 years and has managed the growth in this department. Farmers recently upgraded their software allowing them to match any brand of paint by numbers or custom mix colors. “Our pro-staff can assist our customers with all their project needs. We have all the sundries that a professional or do-it-yourselfer requires for their job, big or small. Our paint department is second to none in the county,” added Walt.

“Thank you to all of our valued customers for voting us the Best Building Supply Company in Fayette County. We appreciate everyone who voted and the people who rely on us for all their building and hardware needs.

“We will continue to put our customers first and live up to this special recognition as well as the goal of having everything you need…EVERYTHING,” Walt said.

If you are new to the area or have not visited the store in a while, please stop by and check us out and visit their website at farmerslumber.com.