For Althea Tower, owner and builder at Riveted Woodworking & Design in Bristol, opening a custom design business was a somewhat unplanned turn in her career path.
Tower’s knack for design traces back to childhood, when she began sewing at a young age and, by 13, became a seamstress’s apprentice. Tower went on to earn a degree in sewing and fashion design but because she wasn’t interested in moving to a typical fashion industry hub such as New York City, she found that career options were limited.
But other careers didn’t bring about the sense of fulfillment Tower hoped for, and she wanted more of a leadership role in her professional life.
“I always missed the desire to create something from scratch, from my own design,” Tower said, “but I also learned pretty quickly from the jobs that I was in that I wanted to work for myself.”
When Tower began crafting small woodworking projects, she found that the creative process wasn’t so different from her experience designing clothes.
“I would have never told you that this is what I would be doing 15 years ago,” Tower said about woodworking, “but it’s something I landed on that I really, really love.”
Six years ago, Tower turned this skill into a custom design and handcrafted woodworking business, initially making smaller items such as signs, furniture and other décor. As her interest in woodworking grew, so did the scope of her projects.
“Because of that, I needed to start to learn how to use tools,” Tower said. “I got tired of waiting and asking my husband for help, so I began to learn and teach myself. I really grew a love for building.”
Eventually, Tower began working on larger projects such as accent walls and built-in structures following requests from her clients.
Demand for built-ins “grew pretty quickly because there weren’t a lot of people out there in this area who were doing them,” Tower said. “And now, that’s the bulk of my business.”
Through her work, Tower also hopes to inspire other women to feel confident with trade-related skills.
That could mean “anything from knowing you’re capable of picking up a hammer or drill to saying if you want to be a carpenter or you want to be an electrician, you can do it,” Tower said.
“There is such a need for people to get into the trades, but for women it’s not necessarily a career path that’s laid out for you,” she added. “I just want people to know it’s an option, and it’s a great option.”
As a small family business consisting of Tower, her husband and two part-time assistants, Tower said she enjoys a close relationship with customers, who often return to Riveted for future projects.
“I listen to what they’re telling me, then I use my creative side to come up with options they might not have thought of,” Tower said, “and we usually come up somewhere in the middle.”
Tower hopes to grow the size of her business in the future, but she wants to remain small enough to maintain a trusting relationship with customers.
OWNER: Althea Tower
TYPE OF BUSINESS: Custom design and handcrafted woodworking
LOCATION: 500 Wood St., Building 21, Bristol
EMPLOYEES: Four, including two part-time workers
YEAR FOUNDED: 2016
ANNUAL REVENUE: WND
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. Contact her at Voghel@PBN.com.
