Wendell Berry meets big business (people over profits)

How do you maintain the 'small is beautiful' ideal and apply it on a national scale? This has been one of the struggles for me these past few weeks. What I have come up with so far is that I do not want to use a corporate model: I would much prefer to utilize a co-operative business model. Here is the idea as I have formulated it so far: I would like to outsource all the raw wood production and milling. The end product would be boards that are ready to be used, kiln dried and possibly even have a groove in one of the sides. If I apply the above philosophy of 'people over profits' I am quick to conclude that it is esthetically unpleasing and unhealthy to create a sweat shop production line in order to maximize efficiency. In contrast, what I see as more balanced is to approach local carpenters and provide them with the finished boards; they would then assemble these boards into a simple box. They have the option of creating finished boxes and marketing these products directly but the surplus production would come back to necessitate volume to meet the demand. There are several principles incorporated with this model:

1. Supporting local industry which is consistent with my values

2. Keeping overhead low

3. Providing a flexible workforce. If I require more production I can provide incentives or find more woodworkers. If business slows, I don't have to lay off employees because they are self-employed and they will then naturally focus on marketing the product directly.

4. By using a cooperative model, I can reward individuals with additional shares in the co-op. The more they make, the more of the company they will own, therefore, a vested interest in making the business successful.

5. I suspect the reason is that many woodworkers have not chosen this craft is because they are uncomfortable with selling this type of product. With support, some will be empowered to acknowledge the valuable service they are providing to these families, others can simply focus on additional income while being unencumbered by the hassles of distribution.