# STL INT: Interview with Garrett Wade founder Garry Chinn

- Show: [Shop Talk Live](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live)
- Published: 2020-10-02
- Length: 52m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn
- Listen: https://shoptalklive.podcast.static.taunton.com/stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chin

## Summary

Garry Chinn, founder of Garrett Wade, recounts how a 13-year-old shop class experience inspired him to launch a catalog business in 1975 to supply high-quality hand tools to American woodworkers. Chinn details his early sourcing trips to Europe, where he partnered with Swiss manufacturer Inca and Japanese maker Toshio Odate to bring precision machinery and tools to the US market. He explains how the company evolved from a niche woodworking catalog into a broader retailer of unique home goods, including gardening tools and toys, while maintaining a focus on educational content and functional design.

## Chapters

- [0:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn#t=6) Introduction: Garry Chinn and Garrett Wade's 45th Anniversary
- [1:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn#t=64) Chinn's Early Inspiration: Shop Class and Mahogany Coffee Table
- [7:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn#t=426) Identifying the Market Gap: Sourcing Tools in New York
- [10:53](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn#t=653) Launching the First Catalog: Sourcing from Europe and Education
- [20:44](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn#t=1244) Early Partnerships: Paul Roman, Fine Woodworking, and Inca Machinery
- [28:55](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn#t=1735) Expanding Product Lines: Toshio Odate, Japanese Tools, and Lee Nielsen
- [33:09](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn#t=1989) Retail Operations and the Evolution to Home Goods
- [42:23](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn#t=2543) Diversification Strategy: Gardening, Toys, and Unique Function

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Sourcing & supply chain](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sourcing-and-supply-chain)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Garrett Wade (company)
- Woodcraft Supply (company)
- Whole Earth Catalog (product)
- Inca (product)
- Toshio Odate (other)
- Lee Nielsen (other)
- Baelin Brothers (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Leatherman Tool Group: Tim Leatherman](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-01-31-leatherman-tool-group-tim-leatherman) (How I Built This)
- [Crate & Barrel: Gordon Segal (2017)](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2019-11-18-crate-barrel-gordon-segal-2017) (How I Built This)
- [134: Kevin Kelly Remains Undefeated](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2026-06-24-134-kevin-kelly-remains-undefeated) (Thoroughly Considered)
- [Episode 063: $2000 to start over](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/making-it/2016-03-18-episode-063-2000-to-start-over) (Making It)
- [Room & Board: John Gabbert. A Broken Deal, a Family Rift, and the Birth of a Furniture Giant](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-05-11-room-board-john-gabbert-a-broken-deal-a-family-rift-and-the-birth-of-a-furniture) (How I Built This)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/shop-talk-live/2020-10-02-stl-int-interview-with-garrett-wade-founder-garry-chinn. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Shop Talk Live.