Local Business Gains National Recognition

Lynn and Gary Passavanti, owners of Ideas in Wood, were featured on the March 2007 cover of CabinetMaker.

In an industry dominated by big-box stores, a Ramona business has been able to not only hold its own, but to stand out.

Ideas in Wood, owned by Gary and Lynn Passavanti, has been producing kitchen and bath cabinets and wood furniture for the home and the office for 28 years.

Ideas in Wood has done so well that the March 2007 issue of CabinetMaker, a national trade magazine, featured the business as its cover story. It was a natural fit for the magazine, which focuses on small shop owners.

The individual level of customer attention, the unique Ramona showroom/design center, the quality of the work and the vast choices for customization has built Ideas in Wood a solid reputation through the years.

Serving all of San Diego County, Ideas in Wood has managed to set itself apart from the larger home improvement and furniture companies.

"Our goal is to create exactly what the customer has in mind," says Lynn.

Photos courtesy of CabinetMaker

The business started off with a shop in Julian. But in order to help customers with their creations, the owners felt they needed more space. In 2003, they added their Ramona design center, which occupies more than 5,400 square feet.

"The design center allows customers to not only see many different styles of cabinets, but shows off other details such as countertops, hardware styles, layouts and space-saving features," says Lynn.

Customers can purchase dining sets, occasional tables and bedroom pieces at the Ramona showroom. There are also decorative pieces, such as candles, lamps, vases, wall art and other gift items.

"We want our store to be the complete 'one stop shop' for all our customer's home decorating needs," Lynn says. "We are working for the 'customer for life' who keeps returning to shop with us."

"We give the customer a choice and a full range of pricing levels," she says. "Whatever their budget is, we can make or buy cabinets to fit."

She says that Ideas in Wood usually offers not only more choices, but that the cabinets will be better priced and be better quality.

"Our pricing is almost always lower, whether we make the cabinets ourselves or use pre-manufactured cabinets by top-quality dealers," she says. The dealers include Canyon Creek, Sky Valley, Medallion, Omega, Diamond and Aristokraft.

"Our customers are investing a lot of money in their home upgrades. We believe they should get the best value for their money," Lynn says.

Ideas in Wood has two stores and both are open daily. The Ramona showroom/design center is located at 850 Main St.; the Julian store is located at 2111 Main St. For more information, call 760-788-1560 or visit www.ideasinwood.net.