Outsource Component Manufacturing is Soaring in the Closet and Storage Industry

by Jeff Klein – Director of the Closet Institute of America

Over the past ten years, the number of independent closet & storage business professionals relying on outside sources to fabricate their closet products has doubled.

'Outsourcing' is widely recognized as the fastest growing segment within the closet industry.  The Closet Summit Conference & Vendor Expo surveys their conference attendees to discover who manufactures their own components in-house, versus those who use external resources. 

Every October the Closet Summit Conference features vendor booths which include Outsource Component Manufacturers.

Ten years ago, that number was twenty percent.

The Closet Summit asked this question again in 2023 and that percentage rose to 40%. The CIA, Closet Institute of America (the only association of closet & storage professionals trade group exclusively for independents) now predicts that half of all custom closet businesses in North America will outsource part -or- all fabrication by 2027.

Why the surge?

When we started our family-owned custom closet company in Savannah in 1984, there were two options: you either became a California Closets franchisee, or you manufactured your own product. Also available were nationwide closet dealerships like Closet Maid, Rubbermaid and Schulte, which mostly concentrated on wire shelving.

Over the years large closet and cabinet workshops, with excess manufacturing capacity, began offering production services to local closet companies.

There are multiple reasons why 'outsourcing' has skyrocketed in the past decade:

• Current in-house machinery cannot keep up with demand

• Unable to expand physical facilities where needed.

• Worker Comp and liability costs for manufacturers are getting cost prohibitive.

• Existing equipment is outdated and too expensive to replace.

• Failure to find and/or train qualified shop employees.

• More availability from outsourcing companies on a local, regional or nationwide scale.

• Entry level or start-ups desiring to enter the closet industry with no intention of producing their own products.

• Existing housing-related businesses, like kitchen and bath shops, exploring adding product lines.

The Closet institute of America has the most comprehensive Outsource Component Manufacturers Index in the closet and storage industry: https://www.closetinstitute.org/outsourcers-public-version

This list of supporting Closet Institute of America member vendors and suppliers of components has a convenient category filter which sorts the listings according to:

• Regions Serviced

• Sheet Goods Offered

• CAD Software Utilized

An existing custom closet business, considering making the switch to an outsource, must consider many major decisions:

• Can I be provided with the same sheet goods supplier?

• Are my existing showroom displays going to be obsolete?

• What CAD software will I need to be using?

• Am I within range considering reasonable shipping costs?

• What is your turn-around time from order to delivery?

• Will my new suppliers provide marketing support?

• Is there a minimum ordering requirement?

• How is the storage system flat-packed and shipped?

• Do I have the option of providing my own hardware and accessories?

Those utilizing outsourcers are not obligated to contract all their production to others. Closet companies who currently manufacture may choose to continue concentrating on specialized custom storage systems and have others fabricate their everyday basic closets. Others may continue to produce items in-house that outsourcers do not offer, such as wall-bed systems or real wood home offices with hidden fasteners.

A clear example of this trend is our family-owned closet business in Savannah, Georgia. Josh Klein, owner of Closet & Cabinet Experts, morphed his business in 2011 from his dad’s Closet Specialist, created in 1984. For 40 years, the Klein clan manufactured their own product from their state-of-the-art 14,000 square foot facility. In late 2023, Josh received an offer (he could not refuse) for his property (not his closet business) near the Port of Savannah. With no physical space to continue to produce closet and storage systems, he sold his machinery, found an outsourcer who he discovered at a previous Closet Summit Conference: https://www.closetinstitute.org/closet-summit

and the rest, as they say, is history.

Discover the latest in closet innovations at the Closet Summit Conference & Expo in Nashville, TN, from October 15th to 17th, 2025.

The Closet Summit is a gold mine for those thinking about outsourcing as many of its  Vendorama Expo booths are nationwide dealerships, regional providers of storage systems, or local fabricators with excess manufacturing capacity.

There are not many professional closet and storage associations or trade groups that offer a comprehensive listing of outsource options. The Closet Institute of America does!

Since 2014, the Clostet Institute of America has been providing networking opportunities, training, educational resources, and industry-wide data, statistics, and metrics for independent closet businesses of all sizes to find support and make informed business decisions through their services.

Examples of Closet Institute of America's Range and Reach

~ Closet Institute of America e-newsletter (3000+ subscribers). To be added, email Jeff@ClosetSummit.com

~ CIAMO (Closet Institute of America Member Only) private networking website (approaching 400 members):  https://www.closetinstitute.org/

~ Closet Institute of America's 24/7/365 Facebook b2b networking platform (1200+ followers): https://www.facebook.com/groups/CIAClosetSummit

~ Face-to-face Closet Summit Conference & Vendor Exposition (this year in Nashville on October 15th-17th) with room for 300 attendees and 45 Vendors maximum (sold-out the past 2 years): https://www.closetinstitute.org/closet-summit

We love to use this tagline because . . . it ain't bragging if it's true.

Join the fastest growing trade association of closet and storage professionals in North America. We want you to be part of us because . . .

"It Gets Lonely at the Top."

For more information:

https://www.closetinstitute.org/

-or- Jeff@ClosetSummit.com  ~ 912-313-9943