VIDEO. Share-Wood: More than a Co-working Space for Craftsmanship

Here’s a wood-sharing workshop concept for all, fit for professionals and individuals working on personal projects. As craftsmanship continues to increase in demand and production, this concept might be worth duplicating. Watch our video to learn about the workshop’s three novelties for 2020.

In 2017, Vincent Chevillot and Romain Abbuhl co-founded Share-Wood in order to propose a solution against social, environmental and economic stakes brought about by wood-crafting projects.

The 1500m² workshop provides makers with a large selection of equipment, materials and spaces. From the circular saw to the wood lathe, workers have access to professional quality equipment for carpentry. New wood or reclaimed wood, there’s a complete storage space for ready-to-use material. Worktop stations are available for cutting and sanding, and there are assembly workbenches. Workers also have access to a kitchen, changing rooms and a meeting room.

“Basically, everything you find in a traditional carpentry workshop,” Vincent Chevillot said in an interview with 20 Minutes in October 2019, and again in an interview with ArchiExpo e-Magazine at their workshop on October 15, 2020.

But unlike other carpentry workshops, Share-Wood is accessible to everyone. “A la carte” or subscription prices are offered to professionals, associations or schools during the day, as well as to individuals, who represent 70% of the 150 members, in the evening.

“Since our opening in January 2019, we mainly welcome professionals on weekdays and people aged eight to eighty at weekends,” Vincent Chevillot, an architect specializing in wooden constructions and originally from the Vosges, said in an interview with LeMonde in September 2019. At the time of the interview, about fifteen professionals were already frequenting the place, while over 120 individuals were members of the association that governs it.

For those who could use an extra set of eyes and assistance, experts are available to help carry out whatever wood projects makers might be working on.

Through woodworking, Share-Wood has three goals: To break down the social challenge of diversity and cooperation; the environmental challenge of reducing wood waste by sharing and reusing their wood waste; and the economic challenge by supporting young entrepreneurs who are starting out in the wood industry. These goals were stated by Vincent Chevillot in his interview with 20 Minutes.

Users can either source wood on their own or join bulk purchase orders. A waste collection process allows users to easily access wood material while reducing their expenses. Thanks to partnerships with local authorities, companies and suppliers, Share-Wood links the wood sector and the waste sector. And thanks to this, Wood becomes a valuable conductive material.