The axe factor: Basic tool cuts a new niche

New York – Two entrepreneurs surrounded by iPhones and flat-screen tvs realised that what they really wanted could be traced back to the wilderness: a good axe.

As a result, the Best Made Company was born. Founded by designer and author Peter Buchanan-Smith and outdoorsman and environmental entrepreneur Graeme Cameron, it offers handmade axes, designed, painted and polished individually in a small workshop in downtown Manhattan.

The axe handles come in different colours, including red and bright yellow and are made of Tennessee hickory wood. Each axe is given an individual name, such as Red Knee or the Bumble Queen. ‘This process is crucial: it’s where we give the axe the beginning of its story,’ say the founders. Communicating the process of creation is becoming increasingly relevant for brands as they strive to capture the narrative of production. The process story is analysed in more detail in our new Luxury Insight report.