Buurman Expands Circular Building Supply to Six Cities

Why this is here: Buurman’s workshop generates approximately the same revenue as its building supply store, highlighting the importance of education and hands-on experience to its business model.

In Rotterdam, Netherlands, Buurman—a circular building supply store and woodworking workshop—is expanding its social franchise model across the Netherlands and Belgium. Founded in 2014 by Laura Rosen Jacobson, Bas van den Berg, and Lenard Vunderink, Buurman offers reclaimed wood from local sources, including trees felled within the city of Rotterdam. Customers include both DIY enthusiasts and small construction companies, though stock is variable—ranging from materials for small projects to those for tiny homes.

The company also hosts workshops and provides workspace for people wanting to learn woodworking, with the workshop generating roughly the same revenue as the retail side of the business. Buurman currently operates five locations in the Netherlands and one in Belgium, aiming for ten by 2030. They prioritize intensive collaboration over rapid growth, limiting expansion to one new location per year.

Finding suitable spaces—large enough for material storage and workshops but accessible to city residents—remains a challenge. While waste wood is becoming more valuable, structural changes in construction industry earnings are slow to materialize.