Our Story

With a background in architectural design it was natural for Ivan to gravitate toward realizing his designs in tangible products, starting with the blank page and ending with a beautiful finished creation. He is thankful for the privilege of working more than thirty years in the wood industry.  In his career he has touched on most aspects of the field. Early in his career he made wooden toys, hand-carved rocking horses, wooden games, and puzzles that he sold at craft fairs. Around that same time he had an opportunity to enter the retail hardwood market. Ivan – along with his wife and partner, Becky – founded their first business in northern California, Westgate Hardwoods, and began to buy and sell lumber by the truckload. 

Moving large quantities of wood around was profitable from a business standpoint, but Ivan recognized the potential for more. He bought a Weinig molder and began to produce premium hardwood moldings for local cabinet shops. As his market grew, talented people joined the enterprise and new possibilities opened up: cabinet doors, then cabinets, custom entry doors, furniture, and eventually a full-circle return to milling logs for urban lumber. Whatever it was, Ivan always had a vision for making things right. The reputation that grew around his name and business was due to this adherence to quality.

In 2020, Ivan and Becky made the decision to leave California to return to their roots in Michigan. By this time, Westgate Hardwoods was well established as a high-end custom shop with a clientele of architects, designers, and contractors throughout California and Nevada. The business was purchased in 2021, and it continues to offer the same great product and service. Ivan and Becky moved to Mesick, MI the same year.  

Ivan brought along the foundation for a new business in the move: equipment, slabs, and lumber. He bought a 12,000 square foot warehouse and shop. Within a year he and Becky had founded Northwood Enterprises along with the Made in Mesick brand.