Today we’d like to introduce you to Corey Schleifer.
Hi Corey, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
“We hold on to one very important word here at Schleifer’s WoodWorks LLC… Integrity. This company is built on it. When I started out on the idea of building“ another construction company” I knew we had to be diferent. Together with my team, we have combined over 30 years of residential construction experience in over 20 trades and specialties. With all of our history living, working, and loving these Twin Cities, we pride ourselves on our experience while aiming to bring “the craft” back to craftsmanship.“
– Corey Schleifer
The beginning, I Corey have been in the trades for 16 years and working with wood as a
hobby for over 20. I have always been interested in making things by hand. At a young age I
learned to use table saws, hand saws, drills, and many other tools. I remember when I was a kid
there was a church down the street from us that started to renovate, so at night I would go and
take their scrap wood they had thrown away, and built a crude fort in my back yard. I remember
what it was like to build something on my own and have my own space because of my eforts. I
believe that was one of my first moments of clarity in knowing I was going to do this my whole
life. It was from then on, if I wanted something, I would attempt to make it out of whatever I
could get my hands on at the time. I started collecting tools at garage sales and thrift stores,
some of which I still have on my benches today. learning to miter my cuts, properly use a jointer
to squaring up lumber, clamping and gluing, and diferent sanding techniques. As time
progressed I became drawn to larger equipment such as drum sanders, lathe work, and band
saws, rarely getting the chance to use stuff like that on the regular.
Growing up was not easy with people arguing and constant chaos, folks stealing and breaking
into garages all the time around us, moving from place to place until we moved from Las Vegas
to Minnesota. It is there that I started to build my first shop in the back of the garage of a house
my parents rented in Mpls, and found the time to really hone in on this massive part of me
wanting to create. I turned out a lot of cutting boards during that time, hahaha, and became
much more technical with what I was crafting. Now old enough I would sell them or give them as
gifts trying to make money to buy new tools or save money on buying gifts, so I could buy more
tools hahaha…
Finally getting the chance to make a small shop for myself I got to build my first real set of
cabinets, shaker style doors and stable shelves, to hold all of my hand tools and accessories I’d
acquired. I could have bought basic cabinets from a big box store but where’s the fun in that !
Bound to the limits of their standardized sizing, and their cheap particleboard construction (think
compressed wood chips), or MDF (medium density fiber board, think compressed saw dust)
plus spending money was just not an option for me. Using all solid ¾ plywood I had saved or
collected was definitely a better choice. In building these I found a passion for custom making
cabinetry and built-in’s out of actual wood for my shop at the time. There is something that just
feels diferent about the way I do things, getting all the raw materials and mapping out all my
cuts, then routing in all the shelves, using a plethora of tools to achieve whatever the vision is at
the time.From there I worked a ton of diferent jobs in the trades learning a wide variety of trades from
real craftsmen like I consider myself to be nowadays. Working at cabinet shops and companies
like JL Schwieters framing houses and multi-family apartment buildings taking my skill set from
crafting to real time building structures. I also worked at Pizza Hut at night as a delivery driver,
where I met my now Project Director, Micheal Prenosil or “Mikey Nitro” as most people know
him as. He had just left Carpentry Contractors (CCC), another local framing company working in
Woodbury at the time, and was also delivering pizza on the same shifts as I had. We quickly
became friends talking about past experiences growing up and our backgrounds in construction
and wood working alike. Mikey at that time was starting at a new construction company he
would co-own with a mentor of his he knew from working in fire and water damage at
Restoration Professionals for years, who had just passed the General Contractor state exam.
Once everything was a go he asked me to come work for him as a carpenter. Over 7 years we
worked on a ton of projects off and on where Mikey would bring the vision to me and I would
execute that vision in a mock up on CAD (computer aided design software) and then bring it to
life in the shop or in the field. This real time use of my many skills I have acquired and doing my
own installs was a total game changer for me. With Mike and I as a team we were able to finally
build custom things for real clients and take on new challenges and approaches in our craft.
After Hillman Services LLC. closed, I went to the union for building bridges all around the state
with S M Hentges & Sons Inc. learning about civil construction, grading, and concrete. Altho this
job helped pay the bills with my now 2 kids and a mortgage to pay in Prior Lake… I still never
lost my passion for true craftsmanship. Still taking on projects like building sheds, cutting
boards, chess sets, on the side knowing that has always been where my heart lies.
During that time Mike went on to become a Field adjuster for AmFam insurance, now writing the
estimates for claims that he used to write estimates for the repairs on. We were both still
learning new skills and growing into our late 30s but still wanted to be back doing something
most folks never learned or never got the chance to.
I needed more out of my career and wanted to be fulfilled by what I do everyday again, still
always looking for that challenge. After some big family losses in both mine and Mike’s lives we
had a conversation about what was important to us, as death typically makes one ponder. We
decided it’s not the money, it’s not the job title, it’s not the long hours spent for someone else’s
gain… It’s being satisfied at the end of the day with what we can create, what we can teach, and
what we can leave behind in home after home. It’s crafting with our hands, it’s getting covered in
saw dust right up until stain, or paint… it’s changing the functionality of our clients lives and
bringing their visions to life, it’s having the skills and never sacrificing quality for production ever
again.
This time around, I took on the role of owning a business. I registered with the state for starters
and legally became Schleifer’s WoodWorks LLC while Mike built our website using photos from
jobs we had done together and projects we had done on the side. Taking all our past knowledge
and experiences, and finally putting them all in one place. As soon as we branded and launched
the calls and emails just started pouring in from new potential clients who had an obvious need for our now 30 years of combined experience in many many construction related fields. Our
story rang true and our skills to match, as we began making custom cabinetry and full built-ins
by hand, one by one. As the business started to take off we both left our jobs and decided this is
what we are meant to do, this is how we build legacy, this is how we transform the lives of those
that let us serve their homes.
With the increase of inquiries, now for more than just a product we can produce and install, we
started getting calls about framing, custom millwork, dry and wet bars, all the way up to full
residential remodeling. It was clear to me that we needed to expand and adapt to better serve
our future clients, so I went to St. Paul with my qualifications and registered to take the General
Contracting state test. I passed my first time pulling from years of knowledge and hands-on
jobsite training giving us the green light to continue growing and serving our communities.
Nowadays, Mike handles all the estimating and client relations but still finds time to get his
hands dirty in the shop on my property in Prior Lake, and I get to design and build endless
visions from clients and work out new challenges with every build feeding that hunger to create
everyday. I’d say we are exactly where we should be and in the roles we built. Our attention to
quality and never using cheap materials or rushing something out the door just to get paid is the
main focus here. Simply put, we do things diferently here. After decades of watching how
companies let people and their projects slip through the cracks or cut corners for productivity
and faster money, we can truly set ourselves apart in everything we design and craft.
All these years rolled into one place has been truly rewarding for me personally and has helped
me on many levels get back to my roots and spend time with my wife and kids while working
from my home shop. I currently have drafted plans for a 50x 60 ft 2 story shop we plan to build
next year in 2027. For now we are looking at renting a second space to keep up with our ever
growing need for space and hopefully securing that lease in May of 2026. All things
considered the future is bright and built from my own hands just like the things I craft each and
every day for our clients. After all we are “ Not Your Average Wood Shop”
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Growing up was hard to get tools and even when I did I couldn’t get a lot of things I needed, always having to do twice the work or a lot of hours hand doing something to achieve the reults I wanted, then finding a place to use as a shop was problematic bouncing from garage to garage, and never having the power needed to run a compressor and my saw at the same time…. many many hours of unplugging and rearranging to make use of something or to move anywhere that would let me set up shop, even if just for a week.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
Sourcing equipment and tools is primary if you want to start working in wood. Thrift stores, garage sales, grandpa’s basment, whatever you can get your hands on has a purpose. Expect long hours spent not getting the results you want right away, but I will say there is nothing like standing back when whatever you are crafting is done, and feeling the sense of pride that you built it.
Having patience and finding an older generation to learn from while they’re still around is by far the greatest way to learn old school techniques and tricks Without us gaining that knowledge and then sharing it someday with someone else, the craftsman side of carpentry might just fade away.
Final advice is always store or save whatever scraps you have or get, because there are a ton of projects from a simple candlestick holder to a cutting board and beyond that you can sharpen your skills on and maybe even sell a few to get that new sander or saw you’ve had your eye on. The best places to get smalls or scrap would be Rockler, or distributors like Siwik lumber where things are sold by the board foot and they often have small cut offs that are very cheap.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.schleiferswoodworks.com
