How It Began
On a visit to his homeland of Trinidad and Tobago, in February 2011, the founder of Carib Teak Inc. – www.CaribTeak.com (Rye Seedarnee), noticed a unique tree growing wild all throughout the rural regions of the island. This big-leafed tree was growing everywhere! As he passed through the country-side he noticed that many locals had at least one or two of these special trees growing on their land. Tectona Grandis, the infamous Teak Tree was growing wild in every direction. Stopping in the heart of bush country, a place called Cushe Village, Rio Claro, he arrived at his grandmother’s estate. Passed down from previous generations, this land appeared to have a plethora of untouched exotic trees. It was then realized that the little tiny island of Trinidad had an abundance of precious exotics woods.
What We Did
After returning to Florida the research started, phone calls were made, emails were sent, and the wheels began to turn. In early 2012 we launched our out of the box idea to export the Teak Wood from our home country of Trinidad to the United States. By June 2012 we received approval from the Ministry of Forestry on the island to harvest a plot of Teak Trees. It turns out this Ministry conserves the entire 66,000+ acreage of Teak Forest in heart of island, and they issue plots annually for sustainable harvest. We were the 1 of the 23 plots issued that year.
How We Did It
And we were off…! We assembled a small crew of experienced loggers from the region and a logging truck to move our logs from the Teak field to a local sawmill. On October 1st 2012 Caribbean Teak & Lumber Supply, L.L.C. was formed in the U.S., and by January 2013 our first container load of quality teak boards had hit the high seas on its way to Florida and possibly beyond. Our container load of Teak wood landed in the U.S. the following month and the business that was once an idea had commenced. We unpacked and sorted each piece of Teak wood by hand in our warehouse. We then launched our site CaribTeak.com and the phone began to ring.
Fast Forward Five Years
We’ve since outgrown the warehouse where we initially started. Today we supply 13 different species of Exotic and Domestic Hardwoods. To name a few; Burmese Teak, Ipe, Sapele, Maple, Poplar, Trinidad Teak, Genuine West Indian Mahogany, and Spanish Red Cedar. We also manufacture custom Teak shower floors and benches. We’ve been privileged enough to be part of many large projects such as The Park Lane Ala Moana Luxury Residences in Honolulu, HI., and we’ve also be featured on HGTV’s hit show “Fixer Upper” Magnolia Homes. The rapid growth and good reputation of Carib Teak Inc. has helped us develop strong relationships with others in the lumber and hardwood industry. These relationships have allowed us to supply quality hardwoods and hardwood products to and from various parts of the globe.
We mill and ship our fine hardwoods to anywhere in the USA and throughout the Caribbean. Whether you need a full container load or just a small bundle of hardwood for your project, we can rip, chop, surface, and/or mill our hardwoods in almost any form you prefer, within reason. Our customers come from an array of industries such as custom mill-works, general contractors, sub-contractors, high-end cabinetry, custom furniture, boat building and marine restoration, new construction and design.
Our Mission
We take pride in what we do! Our mission is to make purchasing Exotic and Domestic Hardwoods on the web an easy and pleasant experience while maintaining a deep respect for such precious natural resources. One of our top priorities is to supply such fine hardwoods at the lowest prices in the industry without sacrificing quality or customer service.
Carib Teak Inc. is committed to the support of a sustainable environment. We use vital practices that help us preserve our timber resources for future generations to meet their own needs. We strive to provide long-term economic benefits for the areas where we operate.
Sustainability stems from the durability of our wood.