Leake Furniture Makers

T John Leek and We'll make one piece at a time, one customer at a time. They are their customers know the Leeks can recreate their favorite antique style. And they do it the old fas But this s Were contacted about the W And because the Leeks were working on other orders at the time, the request put their two man operation under tremendous pressure. First question was can you do t And we thought, of course. We're not going to say no. We didn't know how we was going to do it, but we knew we had to do it. But the We there's The Queen's gift box was completed and overnighted to Was But the Leek family legacy did not start or end with t We're in our 63rd year up here. The Leeks workshop stands on the original family farm on Route 321 in York, South Carolina. They started in the furniture business in the mid-1950s with John's grandparents, Howard and Zoe Leek, who traded in antiques. And my dad joined them in the business about 1966. And it was John's dad Buddy who added furniture repair and restoration to the family business. Then John, who upon taking over the business in the 1980s, decided to pivot entirely into furniture making. Our business has changed a little bit. We're no longer dealing in antiques, but we're the same family in the same location. Still messing with furniture. It's just we're making the antiques instead of selling them. In fact, it was the Leeks reproduction of an 18th century cellaret, which is a locked and portable liquor cabinet that The mahogany piece, with its intricate walnut inlay, was featured in a 2014 National Magazine competition. Although the father and son duo didn't win, they won over plenty of new customers, many of whom live along the mid-Atlantic region. We have quite a bit of furniture in the Was C. area over the years. Maryland, Virginia, D. C. And about everybody up there is tied into the government somehow or another. The Leeks believe word of mouth is what helped them secure another government project, t S. State Department. We just got an email one day about these boxes, and they sent us a picture of one that is in a collection in Was That's why it has t Although the Leeks revised the design of the federal box from the 18th century original, they t Hopefully our box will be just as handsome and beautiful and patented as the boxes are presented as gifts by the State Department to visiting dignitaries. But no matter where in the world these boxes end up, they'll always bear their maker's mark. It says proudly made by Hand in York, South Carolina, USA by John and Jay Leek. In watc It's the relations Special. And their luck continues as businesses booming and there is a wait list for their handmade pieces. For Carolina Impact, I'm Joanne Davis reporting.