Inside POLYWOOD: Design, Durability, and a Circular Future with Lindsay Schleis

What if the best-looking thing on your patio was also the toughest and the most sustainable? We sit down with Lindsay Schleis, VP of Business Development at POLYWOOD, to trace how recycled HDPE becomes design-forward outdoor furniture that survives salt air, summer storms, and years of use—without sacrificing style or speed.

Lindsay takes us from laser sorters and UV-stable pellets to CNC-milled “lumber” and an on-demand, just‑in‑time factory that ships most orders in 7–10 business days. We dig into finishes that move beyond the classic Adirondack look—vintage textures and woodlike select tones—plus a Designer Series with hidden hardware made for architects and interior designers. Collaborations get their moment too: Martha Stewart’s Chinoiserie collection pushed POLYWOOD to extrude 24-inch boards and laser-cut intricate backs, unlocking cast-metal detail in a recyclable material.

We explore what matters most to coastal clients: real durability. From hurricane-tested testimonials to hospitality-grade testing that meets ASTM and BIFMA standards, the brand’s 20-year warranty is grounded in engineering and an in-house lab. You’ll hear how mixed materials—sling seats and woven accents—elevate comfort and silhouette, why the modern Edge collection is trending (with sectional options), and how the trade program streamlines specs, drop shipping, and soon COM cushions with new Sunbrella fabrics. Distribution spans DTC, retail, specialty dealers, the design trade, and hospitality worldwide, with U.S. manufacturing in Indiana and North Carolina reducing lead times.

We also swap ideas for what’s next—outdoor bars, towel returns, and cabana storage that match the same sustainability and performance. If you’re designing by the coast, outfitting a boutique hotel, or refreshing a backyard to actually last, this conversation is your blueprint for durable, beautiful outdoor living.

If you enjoyed this conversation, follow the show, share it with a design friend, and leave a quick review—then head to polywood.com to explore the Designer Program and sample what’s possible.

Learn more at:
https://twinteriors.com/podcast/

https://scottwoolley.com

Chapters

• 0:00 Meet Lindsay & POLYWOOD Origin
• 6:00 From Midwest Roots to Outdoor Design
• 10:45 First Factory Tour & Just‑in‑Time Model
• 15:30 Recycling to Lumber: How It’s Made
• 21:30 Growth, Colors, and Finishes
• 27:30 Scale Without Inventory & Lead Times
• 32:30 Designer Series & Elevated Aesthetics
• 37:45 Coastal Durability & Real-World Proof
• 41:30 Collaborations: Martha Stewart & Innovation
• 48:00 Launch Strategy, Trade Program, and COM

Transcript

Voice Over: 0:00

This is iDesign Lab, a podcast where creativity and curiosity meet style and design. Curator of interiors, furnishings, and lifestyles. Hosted by Tiffany Woolley, an interior designer and a style enthusiast, along with her serial entrepreneur husband Scott. iDesign Lab is your ultimate design podcast, where we explore the rich and vibrant world of design and its constant evolution in style and trends. Today on iDesign Lab, we're joined by Lindsay Schleis, Vice President of Business Development at Hollywood. With over 15 years shaping the casual furnishings industry, Lindsay's design expertise has been featured in architectural digest, Forbes, and more. She's a fierce advocate for sustainability and innovation, and a mom of three who believes great design brings people together. Let's dive in.

Tiffany Woolley: 0:51

Welcome to the iDesign Lab podcast. Today we are joined by Lindsay Schleiss, the vice president of business development at Polywood, which is a really exciting brand that we're going to get to dive into today and learn a little bit more. It is a Maid in America. So let's um welcome Lindsay to the podcast today.

Lindsay Schleis: 1:13

Thank you. Thank you so much for having us.

Scott Woolley: 1:15

Or me, so first thing we like to ask is tell us just a little about yourself.

Lindsay Schleis: 1:24

Well, um I live in Madison, Wisconsin. I grew up here in the great state, uh, the Midwest. I'm a Midwest girl with me. Um I uh went to college here, and then after college, I um did some traveling. I studied abroad in Costa Rica and um landed a job out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin that took me out to New York City for a little bit. Um, ironically, like right before I met my husband, and um I say we we fell in love over the old Nokia phone where my entire per diem went to my uh cell phone bill back then. Um but he lived here in Madison, and once I kind of did that stint in New York City, we knew we wanted to settle down and get married, and we bought a house and have three children and a dog. And um, yeah, that's that's me.

Tiffany Woolley: 2:33

So living the American dream. Where did you dive into design industry? Where did your uh work collab cross over into the design world?

Lindsay Schleis: 2:46

Uh I would say it wasn't until probably I started with Hollywood that it really crossed over. Um, I've always had a passion for design and style, living in New York City, like you know, a Midwest girl in New York City. It was just amazing. And, you know, got to do a lot of really cool things there, working with uh more of the magazine industry and the large publications and just the exposure there. Um and then when Polywood, Polywood recruited me about eight years ago after I had been in the outdoor furniture industry for about eight years prior to that.

Tiffany Woolley: 3:25

And it's such a niche. It's such a little niche that you are actually, you know, in the outdoor furniture industry.

Lindsay Schleis: 3:36

Yes, yeah. I say, you know, it's a really large industry when it comes to dollars, but it's pretty small when you get to, you know, the nitty-gritty and the manufacturers and the we're one big family in this industry.

Tiffany Woolley: 3:53

I know. And there's still so much growth to be had, which is why you know we like to tackle some of those conversations in this podcast. Okay, so keep telling us about how you came to Pollywood.

Lindsay Schleis: 4:04

Yeah. So prior to Pollywood, I well, I started in the industry back when I was trying to find a job in Madison after we decided, you know, we wanted to settle down here, and I answered an ad in a newspaper for a job posting, because that's what you did back then. That's so funny. And um it was for uh a company that did a joint venture in China, actually. So I was doing a lot of international travel and international work in the industry. Um they really gave me, you know, a really great opportunity to get my feet wet in all different areas of the industry, to be honest. Um, and after eight years, I had had my second child and um thought I wanted to stay at home. I am a pretty driven, hardworking woman, and that was really challenging for me. So I but you knew there was a way. Yeah. I joined another company and worked there for a little while before I was recruited by Polywood. And um I'd been doing a lot of international travel, which I loved, but was challenging with uh children at home. Yeah. Yeah. Um so yeah, uh I like to tell the story about my you know, my first interview at Polywood. It's an amazing homegrown company, you know. Uh it's it's truly like the American dream. I mean, really, you know, what they've created. But I was coming from kind of more of a higher-end brand and you know, very fashion forward driven, and um it's about a five-hour drive from Madison to Pollywood's headquarters. And you're driving through like, I mean, flat cornfields, country, country road. The country. Yeah.

Scott Woolley: 6:05

They're and they're in Indiana, correct?

Lindsay Schleis: 6:07

Yeah, Syracuse, Indiana. And I was like, what am I doing? You know, I've been my companies were all in big cities, and you know, what am I doing here? And I got to the the facility and they started the interview actually by giving me a tour of the manufacturing facility, and I I finished that tour, and I was just like, Where do I sign? How do I make this happen? It was it was really cool.

Tiffany Woolley: 6:37

So and what was it that impressed you so much? Was it the team effort or the the product itself, or just what was being built from the ground up?

Lindsay Schleis: 6:47

I think it was a little bit of everything, to be honest. Um the factory is built, it's built on a just-in-time inventory model, so no inventory. Wow, and just the the technology and the process, and I was just like, there is just so much here. There's so much potential. And it was a product, too, that's built on sustainability and a lifestyle, if that makes sense. Like it's it's really we're selling a lifestyle and a sustainable way. So it's a product that I could get behind, you know, something that's gonna last longer than I will. Right. That's a lot. Yeah, it was just it's very it was very meaningful, if that makes sense.

Scott Woolley: 7:37

So let's dive in. Let's talk about who is Polywood, what do they make, and what makes them so interesting as a furniture manufacturer, outdoor.

Lindsay Schleis: 7:49

Um, well, where I don't even know where to start.

Tiffany Woolley: 7:54

So tell them the one thing I would say, like that I think with with Pollywood is it's all the same material, which for so if correct me if I'm wrong, which were like so many other outdoor brands, there's so many. So the design really is the material to a degree.

Lindsay Schleis: 8:13

You're exactly right. And it was really so it was founded back in the 1980s. Out of necessity. Yeah, government-mandated recycling programs were just kind of starting. And um our founder, co-founder, and CEO, Doug Rassey, is if you get the chance to meet him, I mean, he is like the true entrepreneur. You know, I mean, he is just and he saw this overabundance of plastic and was like, there's gotta be something we can do with this, something meaningful, right? And um he, I think, was I don't know where he was, but he saw an Adirondack chair, and he had been, you know, for lack of a better way of saying it, like tinkering in his garage with his high school best friend over plastic. Like, what can we do with this? And in his garage, the first Adirondack chair was formed.

Tiffany Woolley: 9:17

Oh my gosh, they that they say that's the most successful way to start is in the garage. Right? Totally. And like when they were tinkering, obviously the design is a classic design. Were they tinkering using the material like with stamping so that it looks like what like what was there?

Lindsay Schleis: 9:37

Uh you know, to be honest, I'm not exactly sure what they were doing. They had to have been I I need to ask Doug the next time I see them, but they happen to have been melting it. Right. Because to be honest, there's I mean, that's kind of the foundation of the product. It's made with high density polyethylene is actually the plastic chemical substrate. Okay. So anything that you see with a number two symbol on the bottom of the plastic bottle, we actually recycle that. Um, we have an our own in-house recycling facility where we bring in the garbage, the junk. Yeah. And we clean it, we shred it, we sort it. We have laser sorters that, you know, decipher the clear and the white from the colored plastic. And from there it's uh pelletized, UV inhibitors are added, and it's essentially melted down into lumber profiles. So think like two by fours, right? Uh-huh. And that is how polywood is made.

Tiffany Woolley: 10:47

So that is fascinating. I can see why you would be captivated visiting the plant. So when they introduced Pollywood and like, or I guess decided we've got a product here, like we've got something that's not only sustainable but looks good, they obviously being entrepreneurs went with it. And I remember kind of the beginning of the line, you know, there was some colors also. Like how like how did they grow in such a short time?

Lindsay Schleis: 11:19

Um, well, I think that you know there was a lot of um ups and downs, and I think, you know, I I wasn't with the company at that time, but I know that it was boots on the ground, and they were you know selling a product, the East Coast specifically, you know, all the way from the northern to the southern east coast, Florida. Um, the the product withstands the sea salt air. Yeah, the idea like nothing else. It does. And to be honest, I think like back then it was the oh, like the extruded plastic tubes that had the sling over it. I mean, that's the only thing that really withstood the weather on the cove. And Pollywood was so much more beautiful. Um today we have our classic finish that is what Pollywood started with in 14 different colors. Uh-huh. Um, and then we've also added our vintage finish and then our new select finish, which are different colors and a different actual, you know, technology process, chemical process for making that lumber that looks more like natural wood and gives it a textural depth, you know, tonal depth, um, and just elevates the finish a little bit more. But talking about colors specifically, you know, the coast really loves all those vibrant colors. Right. Um we we definitely yeah, it's iconic with polywood, I think. I know.

Scott Woolley: 13:02

So there's multiple different styles of of a wood design in that you know uh sustainable um material, but you also have you've gone far from anaerondic chairs, tables, you've and you have so many different other how many skews do you have now?

Lindsay Schleis: 13:22

I think I mean I can confidently say we have over a hundred thousand skews. Wow. Yeah. And I mean what's even more mind-blowing about it is that we don't really inventory anything. We inventory, you know, our high velocity skews in you know, Q3, Q4 here we're going into where we will, you know, manufacture the sum, you know, for our for inventory. But really what we inventory is our lumber. Gotcha. An order comes in and we pull the lumber, it goes through a CNC machine, and out the door it goes.

Tiffany Woolley: 13:58

So, what is that process turnaround, that timeline look like from an order to so it depends on the product.

Lindsay Schleis: 14:07

I would say seven to ten business days is our standard meet time. Um, obviously, for like large projects as an interior designer, if you're designing some, you know, a large project with maybe over 40 or 50 items on the order, it will be a little bit longer. Right. Um we also introduced probably uh five years ago now, we introduced our designer series, which is a curated um it's got three collections: the estate collection, the elevate collection, and the latitude collection. And it hits a level of design that designers want. Agreed, yes. Um, it has like all of the hidden hardware. The challenge with Hollywood is that it is not true lumber, it is a plastic lumber. And so from a standpoint of, you know, it's it's not really carvable. Right. Right. So the designer series offers an elevated look to our product that doesn't sacrifice any um, you know, our 20-year warranty. It doesn't it doesn't sacrifice how it actions. Yeah, yeah.

Scott Woolley: 15:36

We we live we're in South Florida. And in South Florida, we're doing lots of homes along the ocean. It's one of the biggest concerns that most clients have is what they're putting outside. How long is it going to last? Because you know so many houses just putting a sink in the backyard within two years, the stainless steel sink is is rusting and rotting. But with Polywood furniture in a backyard with sea water, you know, the sea spray and so forth, there's nothing to worry about.

Lindsay Schleis: 16:05

When I first started, we had customer testimonials on our website. And the one that sticks out is, you know, my home did not withstand Hurricane Sandy, but my Pollywood furniture did.

Scott Woolley: 16:25

I also think it's important to kind of discuss the fact that when you think of, we've talked about the Adirondack chair, people think about that and they kind of look at that and classify it, well, that's not the upscale look that I'm looking for. In my backyard, you have so many other alternatives and options, you know, even from the the sofas and and and couches and so forth that you have have a don't have that what is it, adirondic look kind of rustic.

Tiffany Woolley: 16:53

Rustic, yeah.

Scott Woolley: 16:54

Yeah. Yeah. But Pollywood goes much further than that.

Tiffany Woolley: 16:58

There's definitely some refined pieces for sure.

Lindsay Schleis: 17:02

Yeah. And I think we just continue to elevate the look. And it's really important to, you know, our brand as a whole is to continue to be, you know, the leading innovator. And um style is very important.

Scott Woolley: 17:24

Well, you have a collaboration with Martha Stewart.

Tiffany Woolley: 17:27

We do.

Scott Woolley: 17:28

You have a collaboration with Draper James. Yeah.

Tiffany Woolley: 17:33

So how do those come about? And you know, uh that must be fun for you with like the fashion design world and obviously New York coming to Hollywood.

Scott Woolley: 17:46

Is that are those something that are new or have they been around for quite some time?

Lindsay Schleis: 17:51

We launched, I can't remember which year we launched, the Martha Stewart collection. I want to say maybe it was 2022. Okay. Not that long ago. Yeah, and it was really exciting working with her and her team. Um, you know, she doesn't settle. Which is amazing. That's awesome. And so she actually helped um helped push us to new development processes. And prior to uh prior to the the Chinoiserie collection, which is her her collection, the first collection in her assortment with Pollywood, um, we were only extruding smaller, I I want to say smaller boards. I would say I think six inches wide or eight inches wide was the largest board we were extruding. And with the the innovation of her line, we now extrude a 24-inch wide board. Wow. And we laser cut the di the back design. So that chinoisery detailing is all laser cut versus you know individually hand you know, tooling each piece. And so that was a major innovation that allows us to achieve, I would say, almost like you know, cast aluminum looks in our back designs. For sure. So that was really exciting. And I think um, you know, the second collection that we launched with her, the Acadia Collection, is just is very iconic and um has taken us to places we you know we wouldn't have necessarily gone to. So it's been really fun.

Tiffany Woolley: 19:40

What a like a great growth, you know, to collaborate with somebody in the industry who's you know so well respected and obviously known for not settling. How long is that process, you know, when you guys decide to collaborate with a designer and then you know, coming up with the designs and you guys doing the innovative part to make it happen within Pollywood?

Lindsay Schleis: 20:04

Yeah, I would say the what you know we are able to react very quickly because we're, you know, we're right here, but I think each collaboration is a little different because it has to be right. And sometimes that process takes longer and sometimes um, you know, it's pretty seamless and easy. So I would say it's a little different for each collaboration that we've done. Um but you know, the Martha collaboration I would say was probably I would say it was a probably about a good 12 months.

Tiffany Woolley: 20:43

Okay. And then is it then where how what does your launch process look like? Is it like through a high point or is it, you know, through media and social media? How does that process work?

Lindsay Schleis: 20:56

Yeah, it's um so we don't show at high point, unfortunately. Um the casual furnishings industry, their big show, is now in Atlanta. It was prior previously in Chicago. Okay. Um, so typically we, you know, we try to coincide launches with that show, but we also have the capability to kind of like launch product at any time. We're not tied down to necessarily a specific timeline. Obviously, I think with poly we have polywood.com and an amazing, you know, PR team that uh helps as well. But to get impact in sales and attention, you really want to launch, you know, prior to the spring peak season, if you will.

Tiffany Woolley: 21:49

Mm-hmm.

Scott Woolley: 21:50

That makes sense for the so you're in a lot of retail um outlets across the country. Do you have a trade program for the design interior designers to work with Polywood?

Lindsay Schleis: 22:03

We do. We have a trade program for designers. The applications on Pollywood.com, kind of like all the way at the bottom. There's a link for an application. And the the process right now is really seamless. Um we it's all done through kind of a login on polywood.com, so you're never having to really wait for a quote or have something bottlenecked, unless it's like a very special situation where you reach out to us and we help you, you know, obviously, but it's very seamless.

Scott Woolley: 22:41

So place placing an order through the website and the fact that everything's pretty much from what you're saying made on demand. When well, how quickly does an item go out or items go out?

Lindsay Schleis: 22:54

Um it sh typically everything ships within seven to ten business days from the time of order. Um with that being said, the designer series is about 20 to 25 days. Um but most products, like 90% of our SKUs, I would say seven to ten business days. And you can drop ship anywhere. So if you have a project, you know, if your home base is Florida, for example, but you're doing a project in New Jersey, you can drop ship the product right to the home or another warehouse. Yeah, to your warehouse. Yes.

Tiffany Woolley: 23:31

And do you do cushions or COM any materials, or do you strictly just your product, Pollywood?

Lindsay Schleis: 23:40

Yeah, right now we're limited to our stock line, but I would actually say within the next four to six months we'll be able to do some COM.

Tiffany Woolley: 23:51

Because I feel like the cushions, adding that really also, you know, made the line appealing at least to a lot of design professionals.

Lindsay Schleis: 24:01

Yes, absolutely. And now we're getting ready to launch some new um fabrics in our stock line with Sombrella. So um some really beautiful things coming up.

Tiffany Woolley: 24:11

So who is the team that you rely on as you know, the VP of the business development? Do you have an in-house design team, or how do you guys go ahead and curate what's next?

Lindsay Schleis: 24:25

Yeah, we have an amazing design team. Um, it consists of, oh, I want to say there's probably 10 people. Um, but then they work very closely with our engineering team. So I think that was also one of the things that really like drew me to Pollywood when I did my interview process and walked through the the factory tour and the facility tour, is how closely that they work together. And we also have our own in-house testing labs. So nothing is just designed and put out there for lack of a what do you mean by testing lab? Um we have a full in-house testing lab that we put our products through so that they all meet or exceed the ASTM and BIFMA standards. So we have, you know, the uh weight testing, the we've got it all.

Tiffany Woolley: 25:23

Weather, weather, a hurricane machine.

Lindsay Schleis: 25:28

Yeah. So our design team will design something, right? And then our engineering team will engineer a sample, and then it goes right to testing. And if it fails, like if the street uh seat strength is not strong enough, it will go back to design. And they will redesign it with you know seat strength as an improvement to the design, and then it goes back to engineering and back to testing. And so nothing leaves our facility that is not fully tested.

Scott Woolley: 26:03

But I see that you have products now that aren't just the composite material. You have the sling, I guess you call it, material. You have um there's some other materials that you're using now in your products.

Lindsay Schleis: 26:19

Aaron Ross Powell Yeah, we have some uh woven accents like in our rocking chairs that we've actually um had in our line for quite some time. We are getting ready to preview it in September at September Casual Market in the form of a woven seat bucket in a couple of our collections. So I know you know we were talking a little bit earlier that the entire chair or the entire collection is Polywood. We're we're just elevating the look a little bit when you are able to introduce mixed materials.

Tiffany Woolley: 26:53

I agree, for sure, without a doubt. Do you ever retire SKUs or do you guys, you know, just keep adding? We we'll retire some. But we we're better at adding. I like that. That's that's a good full. I like that's what I always say, just keep adding more, you know, especially if you make on demand.

Lindsay Schleis: 27:19

Yes.

Tiffany Woolley: 27:19

So what does that process look like when you say making on demand? The order gets received. Walk us through that those steps.

Lindsay Schleis: 27:29

Yeah. So the order comes in and it goes into our software system, you know, and in our manufacturing facility, the order will pop up on a screen, and they essentially, I mean, that to fulfill that order, let's say it's a the Chippendale seven-piece dining set, right? The table goes to one cell, the chairs go to another cell, they pull the lumber, and there are CNC machines right there that they cut, you know, the lumber for, and then the order is essentially shipped out the door. So it's it's very, very seamless, and it's all on demand.

Tiffany Woolley: 28:16

Kind of like you place an order like at a fast food restaurant. You know, it's kind of like it's it's definitely an interesting process. So what about the design influences? Going back to that again. So with PR, you said you have a great PR team, uh, you know, in social media, how often or how do you use influencers or PR to get the brand and grow it outside?

Lindsay Schleis: 28:46

Yeah, for sure. We have a full, you know, we have an influencer program that we work with, you know, not just necessarily designers, but maybe a lifestyle influencer or an outdoor gardening enthusiast or um, you know, we've done some collaborations like with Blackstone Girls, you know, just that outdoor like living space, right? Right. Style of living. Um, so yeah, we have an influencer program that we use. Um a lot of it is you know, based on content that we're able to then, you know, repurpose and use. Yes, for sure. Um and then from a PR standpoint, I mean, anytime there's like new product launches, or if we're working with, you know, a really large influencer, you know, they have you know different outlet media outlets that they they go to. And um yeah.

Tiffany Woolley: 29:45

It's such a fun process now. Like, I mean, even as an end user and a designer, like I love using uh seeing how other you know, people show the product. It kind of really helps for a client to visualize also.

Lindsay Schleis: 29:59

Yeah, it really does. It's really fun to see how people interpret, you know, the furniture and what they can do with it.

Scott Woolley: 30:08

Are there any particular SKUs or items that are really popular?

Lindsay Schleis: 30:14

More so than others that I would say you know, our Edge collection is probably trending as our most popular collection right now.

Scott Woolley: 30:30

And what is the Edge collection?

Lindsay Schleis: 30:32

Um the Edge collection is a little bit more modern.

Scott Woolley: 30:36

Modern.

Lindsay Schleis: 30:37

Yeah. The name says the Arms Mirror has like a sled-based design. So it just, you know, it's it's beautiful. And in the new select finish, oh my gosh, it's so pretty. Yeah, and we're also launched, so we've just launched that with Sling. Okay. Um, a sling seat. And then also we'll be launching it with a woven seat bucket as well. And it also the deep seating comes in a sectional, which I think is trending. I mean, I think it it's been trending for a long time, but it's not going up style.

Tiffany Woolley: 31:17

No, and it's so cool that you can see the market and you know, add to it as you need also regarding yeah. Like knowing the edge line, you know, is such a hot ticket. And then you can obviously change it up with these other materials and you know, offer it in other ways. And all of that is, you know, in this made-to-order quick turnaround list.

Scott Woolley: 31:45

It is, yeah. Are there any challenges that Pollywood has, you know, in terms of getting educating consumers out there about the sustainability, the craftsmanship?

Lindsay Schleis: 31:58

Um, I think we had a lot of challenges. I wouldn't say necessarily challenges. It was just an evolution of like how to tell our story. Educate people. Yeah. And back when you know, back when we first started in the 90s, it was like the milk drug company. Because that's what people recycled was their recycle your milk jugs, right? There wasn't like the single-use plastic is more popular now than ever before.

Speaker 4: 32:29

Right.

Lindsay Schleis: 32:30

And so, you know, the evolution of telling our story and the all, you know, it's so much different when you see it in person. Like when you see it in person, it's so impactful. But how do you then tell that story? And that's where we really tapped into our influencers and our designers. And you know, we had Carson Cressley and Tom Felicia out. I'll have to send you guys the video of it if you have not watched it. So fun. But like, you know, telling that story from someone that's not a Pollywood employee, you know, I could talk about it for days. And it's like it's genuine, but like for someone else to tell your story in a genuine way is way more impactful.

Tiffany Woolley: 33:21

They would they definitely will make people listen in the design world, especially.

Lindsay Schleis: 33:27

Yeah. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard the whole day. The whole time.

Scott Woolley: 33:32

So to what extent is Pollywood available to the consumer? Is it nationwide? Is it all over North America? Is it outside of North America? To what extent has Polywood grown as a brand?

Lindsay Schleis: 33:44

Yeah, we've grown very we've continued to, you know, experience accelerated growth, which is amazing. Um right now we sell in, I would say all channels of distribution, if you will. So, you know, direct to consumer on polywood.com. Um, you know, we have national account retail and e-commerce, specialty retail, so your you know, your dealers, um, interior design community, the commercial trade community, hospitality, you know, that whole area.

Tiffany Woolley: 34:18

Yeah.

Lindsay Schleis: 34:19

Yeah. Um from an international perspective, really, we we do have, I want to say it's about maybe uh 40 international dealers. Um, and you know, we ship containers over to Europe or um Mexico, Canada, and um they sell the Caribbean, I think. You know, we've got a lot of demand there. Right now, all of our manufacturing is in the United States. Um so really that growth is through our dealer base right now.

Tiffany Woolley: 34:53

And the manufacturing is still done in Indiana?

Lindsay Schleis: 34:57

Yes, it's all in um Syracuse, Indiana, which is our headquarters. And then we also opened a second facility in Roxboro, North Carolina. And that facility, you know, it's just it's closer to the East Coast, so it reduces lead times from a shipping standpoint to to facilitate you know those orders.

Tiffany Woolley: 35:23

So interesting. So what do you think is next for Pollywood? Is the uh a co-owner or the co-creators are they still at the helm?

Lindsay Schleis: 35:35

Yeah, Doug Rassi is very much still involved. Um he, you know, I I don't know how long he'll be involved, you know. He's um I can't imagine Pollywood without him. I bet yeah. Yeah.

Tiffany Woolley: 35:53

Is there any gener next generation ready to take the reins?

Lindsay Schleis: 35:58

Yeah, he's got some family that works in uh you know, in the company and really established just really great leadership and cross-departmental, you know, co-working. And I I think you know, the next phase for Pollywood is really what products we haven't tapped into yet. Um we're looking, you know, with the commercial side of things, you know, just all all of the different things that, you know, towel returns. Um Wow. I mean that's entertainment centers for cabanas, you know, just like there's there's so much out there. Right. Um outdoor structures.

Tiffany Woolley: 36:39

Oh, structures are hu could be huge too.

Lindsay Schleis: 36:42

Yeah, yeah. So I think, you know, that's that's where Polly would, you know, just the evolution and the growth will continue.

Tiffany Woolley: 36:51

So is it patented, the actual process or the material?

Lindsay Schleis: 36:56

Um yes, I believe that you know that I should know the answer to that question, but it it is patented, I believe. I mean it's a proprietary process for sure.

Scott Woolley: 37:07

Are there any new lines or collaborations coming out that you can talk about?

Tiffany Woolley: 37:19

We understand if some of them are kept quiet until it's time, but yeah, I can't really jump all Jenny and But there's some fun things cooking.

Scott Woolley: 37:29

But people should be looking because it's always things coming up. Yeah, that's right.

Tiffany Woolley: 37:34

So I also when you know I always think of this business and this industry somewhat untapped, and there's still so much growth. Obviously, you just mentioned a few of where Pollywood's gonna grow. As for you in the industry and being able to work from home as a mom of three, what does your daily juggle look like or your daily task for you know staying present to Pollywood, but kind of having it all.

Lindsay Schleis: 38:04

Yeah, it is, I know. And I think that, you know, we I grew up in a era where, you know, women can do it all. Right. And you know, we we do a lot, but we can't do it all. No, we try.

Tiffany Woolley: 38:20

No one can. No. The juggle struggle, I call it.

Lindsay Schleis: 38:24

Yeah, it is, it is. I think, you know, we with I have three kids that are in a lot of activities, and summer is difficult. It's definitely challenging. Um, but we ask for help a lot when it comes to the family, and I have, you know, a really supportive husband and a really supportive family, too, to be honest. I mean, I travel quite a bit. So you do travel a lot. Yeah, I do, I do. And I think it's important though that my children, especially I've got two daughters, and even my for my son to see, you know, that mom works hard and she she might leave and she always comes back. And it's important to see them, you know, seeing me in a position of leadership. And you know, I think I think it's really important. And yeah, but my daily, you know, uh oftentimes I'll go to bed at night and I look at the calendar for the next day and like, whoo, how are we gonna do this? But we do it, and um yeah, it's I wouldn't have it any other way. That's for sure.

Tiffany Woolley: 39:36

And and it's just wonderful that you know Pollywood is off, you know, has this opportunity, you know, to work in both ways.

Scott Woolley: 39:45

It is so as head of business development, are you out kind of looking like I'll use an example. We were just recently in Maui, and the resort we were staying at along the beach and and in the kind of the grass dairy away from the pool had a lot of chairs, kind of an anaerondec chairs and tables and whatnot. I'm guessing they were probably polywood because they were the that you know the sustainable material. They weren't made of wood. You know, so I think of like who sold all those chairs and all that furniture to that resort. Is that something like what you would do with business development? Getting into, you know.

Lindsay Schleis: 40:24

Yeah, for sure.

Scott Woolley: 40:26

Big sales like that?

Lindsay Schleis: 40:27

Yes, yes, absolutely. Yeah, I am um in sales, sales mode all the time. Um we're actually we're headed to gather the ASID conference on the home right. Yep. So we'll be there and uh I'll be working. We're we've got a little exhibition booth there.

Scott Woolley: 40:50

So trying to get in front of trying to get in front of interior designers.

Lindsay Schleis: 40:55

Yes, and commercial, you know, hospitality, that side of the business is a real um focus for us in terms of growth right now. Um we we're hiring and have a dedicated team to that segment.

Scott Woolley: 41:09

Yeah, our podcast, a large percentage of the listeners and viewers are interior designers or in the sort of interior design world.

Lindsay Schleis: 41:18

Yeah, yes. Yeah, it's a big focus for us. And we'll be at BDNY in November. Um and then we turn around and go back to Atlanta. We you know, our flagship showroom is there in Atlanta. We relocated in a few years ago when the market relocated from Chicago to Atlanta. We invested in a beautiful showroom there. Um so we do all of the shows that come through America's Mart. And so we'll be there and in Dallas, and then um HD Expo is another big one that we'll be at. Okay. So there's not at Cavas yet, but I have a feeling that might might come.

Scott Woolley: 42:08

And you said you'd you don't you're not at high point?

Lindsay Schleis: 42:11

We're not. We try to support the market as much as we can.

Scott Woolley: 42:15

Uh-huh.

Lindsay Schleis: 42:16

It was really difficult. We were going to go there, and then the casual market moved to Atlanta. And so where is the next showroom for Pollywood? I don't know right now, but I would say it's hard there the proximity of the two, even though they're different.

Scott Woolley: 42:33

Yeah, so do you have more showrooms than Atlanta? Are there any other cities that are headquarters?

Lindsay Schleis: 42:43

We were in Las Vegas and we've sh been in Dallas before. Um we do a lot of the trade shows that require temporary so a lot of investment in that. And yeah, in logistics too.

Tiffany Woolley: 43:02

Moving those moving pieces around. And for the brick and mortar stores, like say retail, do you require them to put a certain amount of pieces on the floor at all time, or how does that so that's one thing, you know, we don't require a deep investment in their inventory because of our models.

Lindsay Schleis: 43:26

So, you know, we there's no reason for you as a store to overbuy, right? For lack of a better way of saying it, when we are a just-in-time manufacturer and can fulfill orders on demand. Um, but with that said, you know, the growth from being known as, let's say, the Adirondack Chair Company, right, to where we are today, I mean, that really came a lot, you know, from our specialty dealers and retail partners.

Scott Woolley: 43:58

Has Pollywood ever done custom orders or custom uh interior designer comes and says we'd like to get three of these, whatever it might be, made, can you facilitate it?

Lindsay Schleis: 44:11

But not a quantity of three, sadly. I would say if it's maybe over fifty or a hundred, we could um we could explore it or look at it. We a lot of our requests we get are like for you know, in engraving like the back of a bench or something. Um it's gotta be a larger order. And color is definitely probably a no. It's to develop a new color. Color is like, I mean, you know, it's thousands of hours of reach research and development that are I mean, it's chemistry, it's all that's what it is. It's it's crazy to think, right?

Scott Woolley: 44:54

You think it's just plastic, but it's yeah, you just add some food coloring here and it's interesting in the in the manufacturing process that you have. You have the ability, and I think of it because we're involved in a tequila company, and I was involved in another tequila company helping it grow years ago, and they were each bottle was as it was being made, they were numbering the bottles. The fact that you're making furniture as it's being ordered, you could be giving each piece of furniture its own personal serial number. So it now has like a another intrinsic value to it because it's like a s it's a one of or of so many.

Lindsay Schleis: 45:37

Yeah, well, and we to some degree we do that, actually. They have like a VIN number. And it's more for quality control.

Speaker 4: 45:46

Uh-huh.

Lindsay Schleis: 45:46

So if there's a defect or if anything goes wrong with the product, we're able to track it back to the exact like lot of lumber that it was made from and the exact machine that it was produced on, so that we're able to improve the quality like instantaneously.

unknown: 46:05

Right.

Scott Woolley: 46:07

Yeah, I think of you you put a little certificate with each thing that goes out. This is your custom-made personal, you know, chair, table, whatever it might be. I think a lot of people might find that to be like, wow, I got my own custom made.

unknown: 46:22

Yeah.

Scott Woolley: 46:22

Because you really are making you really are making it custom made for everyone, what it seems like.

Lindsay Schleis: 46:30

Yeah, that's a good idea. I love that. It's all about the experience, the consumer experience, right? Yeah. Trevor Burrus, Jr.

Scott Woolley: 46:37

It's something else that people will talk about. They'll tell their friends, oh, this is custom-made for me. This is you know my personal number. And a lot of people like like that.

Lindsay Schleis: 46:48

We might have to we might have to take that back to the creative marketing team.

Scott Woolley: 46:55

You know, you think about like a painting, and then the artist takes the painting and they have 150 lithographs made and they're each individually numbered. You know, but they're being made by a printer. They're not the by the artist, but there's still enormous value because there's only 150 of them made.

Lindsay Schleis: 47:12

Yeah, absolutely. I don't know. I want one of those bottles of tequila you were talking about.

Tiffany Woolley: 47:18

Yeah, well, you can have cue up on that. This is a funny question. If you could reinvent any everyday outdoor object out of Pollywood, what would you choose?

Lindsay Schleis: 47:31

Ooh, that's a good one.

Tiffany Woolley: 47:34

Um I liked the garbage towel recycle idea. Yeah. What's that?

Lindsay Schleis: 47:39

You know, I know it's not even possible, but if we could figure out a way to do a grill, that would be so cool.

Scott Woolley: 47:46

Well, I'll tell you one that I wish that you guys would make. Is that, and it just just goes back to our backyard in our house. And I forget where we got it made. It was made of teak. It was it's a beautiful bar. It's about six feet long and it's normal bar height, you know, with shelves and everything underneath it. But over the last number of years, it's kind of deteriorated and because it's made of wood. But I love the the bar in our backyard. It's like so it's used so much. We got a great umbrella over it, like 11-foot. And I think of Pollywood, man, if they could make a bar like outdoor bars. We might have to just do that.

Tiffany Woolley: 48:26

I was gonna say maybe we would I'll help design it. I'd be the first one to buy one immediately. We could be your tri trial. That sounds great. Yeah, because they were submit a request to my design team as soon as we hang on. I know, right?

Scott Woolley: 48:43

That's such a I mean, that is and it's just strips of, you know, what we have with this there are strips of teak, but it's so difficult to like who's gonna maintain the teak and over and and and like like you mentioned the salt water and whatnot in Florida, it deteriorated and it was probably like three thousand dollars when we bought it.

Speaker 4: 49:03

Yeah.

Scott Woolley: 49:04

Today it's Tiffany wants to get rid of it. I'm like, no. But Polly would be be would be fantastic if something.

Lindsay Schleis: 49:11

It really would.

Tiffany Woolley: 49:12

We'll get you a replacement so I think that would be I think that's a good t place to kind of wrap up because I think that would be a really great idea. We need to maybe go tackle that.

Scott Woolley: 49:28

No, it's the it's more of the outdoor entertaining. You know, and especially, you know, we're located in Florida. Outdoor entertaining is 12 months a year.

Speaker 4: 49:38

Absolutely.

Scott Woolley: 49:39

It's uh it's a big focus that every client that we have, you know.

Lindsay Schleis: 49:44

Absolutely. We just launched bar carts. We've got three different designs of bar carts. But I think the bar is the next.

Scott Woolley: 49:51

I'm gonna send you some pictures.

Tiffany Woolley: 49:53

Yeah, we'll send you a great idea. A sketch of it.

Scott Woolley: 49:57

Because I I see the places where Polly is sold here in South Florida, and I know that almost all the places that sell it would sell the bar.

Tiffany Woolley: 50:06

Because I think it was And with it being on like, you know, created on demand. I mean you could do the same bar skew, but with four feet, five feet, six feet, you know, like just so easily.

Scott Woolley: 50:19

And I think that we originally I think we originally bought it from Pottery Barn. And they no longer they have other styles, but the the styles they have are just aren't that great.

Tiffany Woolley: 50:32

And it was kind of out of a necessity. We actually have a beautiful summer kitchen area in our house, but we were having a party and wanted to have like a destination bar. So we kind of, you know, did it and never it never left.

Lindsay Schleis: 50:50

I love it. Well, and it is it's a lifestyle. I mean, I think that's you know outdoor living is it's a lifestyle.

Tiffany Woolley: 50:58

And well, and the high top too, it kind of gives another, you know, a lot of people for balconies and everything like that. It gives it it's another they like having that higher seating. Yes. Instead of just a table, it could be at a bar.

Scott Woolley: 51:14

Yeah, I love it. Well, we really appreciate you joining us today.

Lindsay Schleis: 51:20

Yes, thank you for having me. This has been really fun.

Scott Woolley: 51:23

Right?

Tiffany Woolley: 51:23

It is fun.

Scott Woolley: 51:24

So for more people who are interested in in Pollywood, it's polywood.com. Yep. And there's a search on your website for finding retailers that are you know in everyone's vicinity. That will help guide people to see the product line.

Tiffany Woolley: 51:41

And I love your Instagram too. I do follow Pollywood, and I think it's it's you know, it definitely represents the product very well.

Lindsay Schleis: 51:51

Thank you. Yes, we we try hard, and if you want to apply for the designer program, the applications at the in a link at the bottom of our homepage. Pollywood.com.

Tiffany Woolley: 52:04

Well, thank you so much, Lindsay, for joining us. Enjoy the rest of summertime. Thank you.

Scott Woolley: 52:11

Thank you.

Tiffany Woolley: 52:12

Thanks. Bye bye. Bye bye.

Voice Over: 52:18

iDesign Labs Podcast is an SW group production in association with the five star and TW Interiors. To learn more about iDesign Lab or TW Interiors, please visit TWinteriors.com.