AMHERST, N.S. – A Dartmouth-based cabinet maker and distributor is moving into the former Jeld-Wen building in Amherst’s industrial park.
Cabinet Central is holding a job fair at the Community Credit Union Business Innovation Centre on Wednesday, Jan. 16 at 9 a.m. and is looking to hire a shipper/receiver, CNC operator, finisher, assembly/general woodworkers, a maintenance/handy person and a skilled cabinetmaker/woodworker.
“We’ve basically outgrown our space here in Dartmouth and we cannot produce enough product to meet the demand,” company president Rob Chaisson told the Amherst News on Wednesday. “We’ve always wanted to do a dealership network and when we started looking around for locations we found the old Jeld-Wen building in Amherst that has a lot of space and potential. It just needs a little tender loving care.”
Chaisson, who operates the company with his son, said Cabinet Central is approximately three years old, but he has more than 25 years experience in the business. He feels Amherst is a great place for a distribution centre because of its location in the central Maritimes and access to New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island the United States.
“We’re going to start with six and we see it growing from there. We have the capacity to grow more,” Chaisson said.
The company makes cabinets, bookcases and custom counters as well as other products for the home including kitchens, bathrooms, closets and more.
He said there will be no job losses at its Halifax facility that will become more of a retail operation. He staff there will be retrained for other positions and office staff will be staying at the Akerley Boulevard facility. Eventually, he said, once the new equipment is in place and tested it will be move to Amherst in the coming months.
He hopes to fully operational in Amherst by the end of March.
“No one is losing their job,” Chaisson said.
He said his focus right now is to get the Amherst operation up and running in the approximately 20,000 square feet at the former Jeld-Win building while in future he would look at leasing the remainder of the building out for storage or other opportunities.
Amherst Mayor David Kogon welcomed Cabinet Central’s commitment, saying economic development remains one of the town’s key strategic priorities.
“Anytime you see new business come to town is welcome news, for sure,” the mayor said. “The word is getting out that Amherst has a lot to offer. Business likes our geographic location at the centre of the Maritimes and our easy access to roads, to rail and to airports. Through Rebecca Taylor, we’re trying to get that word out. It’s of benefit to everyone in Amherst if there’s economic growth.”
Kogon said there have a number of inquiries about the town’s industrial park and hopes Cabinet Central will be the first of several good news stories in Amherst.
Twitter: @ADNdarrell
