Business View Magazine | July 2022

71 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 9, ISSUE 7 GROUPE SAVOI E INC . WESTV I LLE DI V I S ION by the hardwood market, both locally and regionally. As Andrew Watters, Plant Manager & GM of the Westville Division of Groupe Savoie, Inc., explains, “There’s been a lot of construction going on in the wake of the pandemic, and what we’ve seen is a significant increase in demand for kitchen cabinet components. Although hardwood prices have traditionally lagged behind softwood, prices have risen sharply due to this increased demand.” Other sectors that have seen a spike in demand are wooden musical instruments (the Westville site manufactures tonal wood products) and architectural trimming components, riding on heightened construction. Groupe Savoie constructed the Westville products, from raw lumber to kitchen cabinets and furniture components. Groupe Savoie Inc.’s Westville Division is located towards the northern shores of Nova Scotia, a few miles from Pictou Harbor. The mill exclusively processes hardwood lumber destined for Groupe Savoie’s hardwood processing facilities in Saint-Quentin, New Brunswick, including Pallets Plus, a pallet manufacturing subsidiary. The Westville mill sources timber from private sellers in Nova Scotia, Rhode Island, and southern New Brunswick. Its Crown Land allotment, although small, does add a fair amount of feedstock to the mill’s capacity. Since the mill exclusively processes hardwood timber, its capacity and price matrices are influenced