Alaska birch crafts and gifts: Marketing practices and demographics

Craft and gift producers in Alaska who use birch as a primary species were surveyed via mail, telephone calls, and site visits. Forty-two usable mail surveys were obtained for a response rate of 38.5 percent. Firms were in business an average of 13 years and utilized an average of 4,778 board feet of birch per year to produce a variety of craft items, including turned bowls, cutting boards, mugs, spoons, and other kitchen and household items. Between 1999 and 2001, average consumption of birch among responding firms increased by more than 42 percent and reported sales increased by an average of 56 percent. Important factors limiting craft production included maintaining consistent quantity and quality of birch sawlogs; the lack of small, easily accessed timber sales; and an influx of low-priced craft items from foreign producers.

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