Cory Rusch is the epitome of a modern skilled craftsman and business owner. Rusch owns and operates Fortress Fine Woodworks, a three-year-old company in Arvada. At age 30, Rusch has built a bustling business fueled by his handcrafted functional fine art.
“When I talk to clients, I do remind them that, especially if they’re buying a piece of furniture, or even if they’re buying a built-in, this is custom art,” Rusch explained. “It’s legacy furniture, so it’s made to last generations. This is an investment that someone is making, just like if they were to invest in a piece of art itself.”
Rusch started in the woodworking field in the most nontraditional way. His first project was building skateboarding stunt supports.
“So even as early as age five, I was building a lot of things in my life, including skateboard ramps, half pipes in our backyard, all sorts of crazy stuff,” Rusch explained.
Rusch got some hands-on instruction from his father, who worked in construction.
“And as I got older, I began working with my father doing construction,” he said. “And that’s where I learned how to use construction tools like nail guns, drills, hammers, all the fun stuff. And being acquainted with that stuff, it really kind of unlocked the possibility of me, potentially woodworking.”
The half pipes and backyard projects were not his first serious foray into woodworking. Music was that formal introduction for Rusch.
“And then one day I decided that I needed a guitar,” Rusch said. “That was actually the beginning of my woodworking journey because I learned how to buy special woods and form them into components that were instrument-like.”
Rusch said learning the skills needed to create an instrument were the exact skills that he would later use in building, refinishing and repairing fine furniture.
“The amount of detail that goes into instruments, it’s considerable,” Rusch said, as he demonstrated on a violin that he created right there in the shop. “A violin is hand carved, basically every aspect, including the scroll and the bow itself are considered instruments.”
Rusch explained how precise measurements, finishes and more are needed to make a violin sound like a violin.
“And this taught me how to not only use tools and do finishes, but more importantly, it taught me a level of patience that I had never experienced in my life before,” Rusch said. “For every project since, especially for customers, I’ve been able to utilize that patience and build their projects to the best of my abilities because of this violin.”
Rusch shared that he learned techniques, skills and other info on woodworking largely from YouTube.
“I utilize the information on the internet to the best of my abilities,” Rusch said.
His work flourished right away.
“I started talking with clients in the construction field. They started ordering things like built-ins, furniture and all sorts of knickknacks here and there,” Rusch said. “Over time, I developed Fortress Fine Woodworks. Two years ago, we got this warehouse so that I could develop much larger scale projects.”
The young woodworker’s shop is in an industrial space in Arvada, near Old Towne. The small lobby showcases a table that Rusch built and a sign with the Fortress logo. The space includes an office where partner Bridget Dvorak helps with the business side of things. Then, there is the workshop. The room is filled with every piece of heavy machinery needed to create any project on Rusch’s purchase orders.
This includes refinishing projects and repairs.
“There’s also projects that I do where I’m refinishing something that someone already has,” Rusch said, showing off an antique table that he was working on. “I would consider the table an antique, but let’s just call it older. I refinished it. The finish that’s put on it now is a little bit more modern. And it’ll hold up to the test of time a little bit better than the old finish that was on it.”
Those old skills learned making instruments come in handy with the refinishing projects, according to Rusch. “
That’s really where the violin and guitar have come in, the finishing processes that I learned from doing these different projects. It takes different skills to be able to do these things like this.” He spoke, pointing out the finishes on different projects, Rusch explained how he is able to produce a higher quality of work for his clients because of his finishing skills.
The skilled craftsman also offered advice to others looking to turn a woodworking hobby into a business.
“I would honestly tell them to start small first because woodworking needs to be able to be learned in a reasonably small space so that you don’t have so much overhead and responsibility,” Rusch said. “I think a small garage or even a shed is a perfect place to start. And there’s a lot of economic tools that you can buy these days to accomplish things. And you can build some amazing stuff with minimal tools.”
Rusch encourages those artisans to study building a business before buying a warehouse. He took years before making the leap and encourages others to do the same.
“But as far as growing a business to this size, it is definitely more so for companies that want to produce large projects for clients,” Rusch said about the demand for fine woodwork.
The U.S. is actually going to need more workers like Rusch in the coming years. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the pool of skilled woodworkers is needed to replace the growing number of retiring craftsmen through 2032. Check out Rusch at work on his YouTube channel Fortress Fine Woodworks. For more information go to fortressfinewoodworks.com.
This is such an amazing article and well written. I’m so grateful for this opportunity and I hope it inspires others to create with their hands. Thank you so much!