Beginning…
Our story began in 2015.
We will not exaggerate or claim that we are coopers in the tenth generation with a long dynastic craft whose mastery has been passed down through centuries. Instead, we will tell a different story — our story. The real one.
Where passion meets craftsmanship
This is a story born at the intersection of passions: a love for wood and woodworking, a desire to live in harmony with nature, and a pull toward connecting with people and cultures from different countries. We have always wanted to feel united with the world as a single whole.
Our team is made up of people with different interests and skills. Some sincerely love working with wood — turning raw material into something beautiful and functional, creating things people will use. Others especially enjoy communicating with people, generating ideas, and finding solutions for them. And some are inspired by interacting with people from different countries — communication, exchange of experience, understanding their traditions.
All of this creates a sense of connection with the entire world, as one whole.
And each of us had our own experience: in woodworking and craftsmanship, in marketing and understanding the market, in international trade — export, import, living within different cultures. All of this merged into one shared, interesting path.
Oak barrels — where it all began
We decided to create wooden products for the international market. The choice fell on barrels for a reason: we did not want to make just decorative trinkets out of wood, but something truly meaningful and tied to long-standing traditions. It was important to us that people would actually use our products — that they would create something of their own with them. Wooden barrels fit this concept perfectly.
Did we manage to make good barrels right from the start? Of course not. There were mistakes, failures, not everything worked immediately. But we kept trying, refining the process, and taking into account every comment from our customers.
Two years later, we were already producing oak barrels of all sizes: from small 1–10 litre barrels to large 20–225 litre ones, as well as tubs for fermenting cabbage and cucumbers, and specialised vinegar barrels for producing wine balsamic vinegar.
Beehives and wooden beekeeping products — a new chapter
One day we had a conversation with one of our customers — the kind that starts with discussing an order and ends somewhere completely different. He asked us a simple question:
“Why do you only make oak barrels? You clearly have enough skills to make other things as well.”
We explained our philosophy: we want to create products with long-standing traditions, eco-friendly and part of a creative process — tools that help people create something new and meaningful.
He paused for a moment, and then his smile was almost audible through the phone:
“You know, beehives and wooden beekeeping products fit your concept perfectly too.”
This conversation planted a new idea. Of course — beehives and wooden products for beekeeping! A great idea!
We began studying different beehive systems used in different countries.
It turned out that every country uses its own structural system of beehives because each had its own path and its own history of beekeeping development.
Since we were already working with customers from the UK on barrels and had established logistics, we decided to try producing British beehives (BS National Beehive). As it later turned out, this system is also used in Ireland.
And the deeper we studied, the more we liked the British design. In our opinion, the British hive is one of the most thoughtfully engineered in the world. Every detail is considered, every dimension has meaning. Yes, they are harder to assemble than Langstroth or Dadant hives, but this complexity is justified by interesting functional solutions.
A year later, we were already producing — in our opinion — high-quality British beehives and the full range of British frames: SN1, SN2, SN4, SN5, Manley frames for supers, DN1, DN2, DN4, DN5, and 14″×12″ frames. Soon we added Commercial frames and Langstroth frames.
Wooden bottles — born from curiosity
Our love for working with wood, our restless urge to experiment, and our desire to create something that could interest people from different countries led us to the next idea.
One evening, while pouring whisky aged in one of our barrels into a glass bottle, a thought struck us: what if the barrel was already in the shape of a bottle? What if you could age drinks directly in wooden bottles? Wow! How would we even make that?
It would be convenient for decanting, ideal for experimenting with small batches, and perfect for beginners who have never tried aging drinks in oak barrels. And honestly — the idea itself just sounded really cool.
We wanted to remain true to cooperage traditions and make this bottle as a barrel — so that it would be a barrel but shaped like a bottle: oak staves, hoops, precise joinery, bending the staves, internal charring. Making a bottle this way was difficult, time-consuming, and almost crazy from a labour-cost perspective… but we still did it.
Winter jacket for beehives – Winter insulation wraps
Alongside expanding our cooperage range, we continued developing our beekeeping line. We added nucleus hives, dummy boards, and frame feeders for British hives.
But these products already existed on the market. We simply tried to make them well, optimising production and logistics so that our prices remained competitive.
However, we didn’t want to only repeat what already exists. We wanted to create something new — something the market didn’t yet have, something that would improve bees’ lives and make beekeepers’ work easier.
While comparing polystyrene hives with wooden ones, we noticed a recurring debate: which is better?
Those who choose polystyrene point to warmth and lightness.
Those who choose wood highlight natural materials, ease of cleaning the inside of the hive bodies and disinfecting with fire, and the simple fact that bees and honey live and mature in a home made from natural materials rather than synthetics.
And then it hit us: what if we make wooden hives warmer? A winter jacket for hives!
We developed insulated covers made from durable tent fabric on the outside, a layer of foam insulation in the middle, and reflective foil inside. We didn’t sew them ourselves — we commissioned production according to our precise blueprints and technical specifications.
Yes, the covers are not made from fully natural materials and do not completely match our philosophy. But they are placed outside the hive — bees almost do not come into contact with them — and they protect the hive from rain, wind, and cold, creating comfortable conditions for the bees in autumn, winter, and spring.
Therefore, these covers rightfully became part of our product line.
Oak barrels with glass ends — when the drink is born before your eyes
While studying beekeeping products, we came across observation hives — hives with glass panels that let you watch the bees at work.
This immediately sparked a new idea: what if we make observation oak barrels?
Imagine being able to see your whisky mature: how the liquid gradually darkens, how slowly the oak, the air, and time work — creating new shades of flavour right before your eyes.
We brought this idea to life.
Observation barrels — oak barrels with glass ends — became part of our range.
And then came a logical evolution of the concept: a compact gift version — oak flasks with glass ends.
A great gift for those who love experimenting with drinks — whisky, rum, cocktails, wine, sherry, and more — aging them in oak barrels and surprising guests with a beautiful presentation when pouring from an oak flask.
Thermally modified wood — the search for the ideal material
We kept returning to one question: what material can be considered ideal for hives?
We wanted something environmentally friendly, natural, with low thermal conductivity (warm in winter, cool in summer), resistant to moisture and rot, and lightweight.
We imagined, researched, and compared different options. Polystyrene and similar synthetic materials were ruled out immediately — we didn’t want to work with anything artificial. We even seriously considered growing hives from mushroom mycelium — yes, we really thought about it, and honestly, we still occasionally return to this idea.
But again and again, we came back to wood.
Ideally, it seemed the best option would be Canadian red cedar. But it doesn’t grow in our region, and importing it would make the hives too expensive.
Then, while studying natural materials used for building facades, outdoor terraces, and yacht decks, we learned about thermally modified wood.
A deep dive began:
testing different species, thermal processing, prototype hive bodies from various thermowood options, field testing of finished hives.
And finally — eureka.
We found exactly what we were looking for. It turned out that thermally modified wood is one of the best natural materials for outdoor use.
And so our thermowood hives were born.
Custom-made products — creativity as fuel
Throughout our journey, we constantly experimented, listened to advice, improved products, and created new ones.
Sometimes customers came to us with different tasks: “Can you make this?” “Can we do it like that?” “What if we try a new shape?”
We realised that we enjoyed it — solving new challenges, creating products that didn’t yet exist. It inspired us, helped us grow, and pushed the craft forward.
At some point we thought: why not let our customers know that we can make custom products out of wood and metal?
That’s how we started a new direction — manufacturing custom wood and metal products. Now, alongside our main assortment (cooperage products and wooden products for beekeeping), we selectively take on custom projects — when the task is interesting and we can give it proper attention. Such projects challenge us, inspire us, and make us think differently. When you are riding the wave of improvement and the search for new ideas, the work remains truly exciting.
We cannot share the custom projects we’ve completed — we always sign confidentiality agreements (NDA).
But we can say one thing: these projects are an additional source of energy that keeps us moving forward.
Online store — more feedback
All our products were always oriented toward B2B — wholesale sales. But over time, we wanted more direct contact with various customers, especially with the end users of our products. We wanted more feedback, more countries, more advice and reviews. We wanted to understand people’s needs more deeply and communicate with representatives of different cultures. And an online store for the B2C segment became the perfect solution.
But we didn’t immediately know which products should be listed online. Some items are bulky, heavy, or designed only for specific countries (for example, British hives and frames). Shipping such items to other regions is too expensive, and sometimes they’re simply not needed by customers from other countries. So there was little practical sense in adding them to the online store.
Eventually, we decided to include only cooperage products and other lightweight, non-bulky items that fit our concept: barrels from 1 to 50 litres, flasks, wooden bottles, trays, and similar products — items where the delivery cost has little influence on the final price and which truly make sense to ship worldwide.
After launching the online store, alongside our B2B partners, we began actively communicating with our B2C customers — receiving more feedback and emotions. And honestly? Many of our customers have become good acquaintances. Sometimes we chat informally, share stories, laugh together. This is one of the most enjoyable parts of what we do.
To be continued
Perhaps our story seems a little chaotic, winding, uneven in places. But that is exactly what it is — real. It has turns, detours, unexpected ideas, and fortunate coincidences. And it is still going on.
We will continue expanding it with new products, solutions, and stories — and sharing them with you.
If our story inspired you to create something of your own, or if you feel that our products may be useful or interesting to your friends or acquaintances — please feel free to share it.