Furnace MFG

When was your company established?

Furnace MFG was established in 1996.  The founder and CEO, Eric Astor, recognized the need for a full-service CD manufacturing facility for independent musicians and small music labels.

What is the origin of your company name?

Furnace MFG was named for the process of creating CDs and vinyl records.  Both the name (and logo) are meant to invoke the feeling and impression creating the product.  As we’ve moved into the vinyl manufacturing business, the logo and name have become even more relevant.  Our original logo was created by Shepard Fairey, the creator of the Barack Obama “Hope” poster series.

Who owns your company? 

The company is owned by Eric Astor.

What is the main business focus of your Fairfax County office?

We have two distinct lines of business in our single location.  The first is our core business, CD/DVD/Flash Drive duplication services.  When a company wishes to distribute content via any electronic media, we can reproduce as many copies as needed – from 1 to 10,000,000. In addition to the reproduction of the actual content, we also offer printing services for all of the materials that are required to make a complete package.  All assembly work (including all products being finished and packaged for distribution) is accomplished on site.  Our second line of business is vinyl record manufacturing.  We import audiophile-quality vinyl records from Europe and perform all assembly work and finishing work (i.e. shrinkwrap, marketing sticker application, drop ship packaging, etc) at our facility in Fairfax.

Who are your primary customers?

We have a national base of customers.  40% of our CD/DVD duplication business is music clients (independent musicians and smaller music labels) and 60% of our customers are corporate, association, and education clients.  One of our goals for 2010 is to obtain placement on the GSA schedule to better serve the government community. For our vinyl business, we work with both independent labels as well as the major music labels such as Warner Music Group and Universal Music.

What sets you apart from your competitors?

Furnace MFG was founded on the simple belief that providing a consistently high quality product with a short turnaround time at a fair price would be enough to differentiate our business from the competition.  We still find that these core concepts set us apart.  Since the company’s founding, there has been virtually no marketing budget.  All the growth in the company comes from referrals and word of mouth.

How many employees do you have and how many do you anticipate hiring in the next 12 months?

We currently have 10 employees and are looking to grow to 13-15 employees in the next 12 months. 

What are the advantages of your Fairfax County location?

Fairfax County offers a tremendously educated workforce and easy access to many corporate clients, associations, and educational institutions.  The majority of our employees live in Fairfax County and we are proud to live and work here.  Working with the FCEDA, we hope to increase the number of local clients we serve.

Where do you see your business in five to 10 years?

Since the company’s founding, Furnace has grown to over $4 million in yearly revenue, branched into new lines of business, and has transformed from a facility with a focus on music clients to customers in corporations, associations, video media and educational institutions. Within 5-10 years we will have quadrupled the size of our company, expanded into larger space (we currently just moved into a 16,000 square foot facility) and have established a national reputation in our various product lines.  We also aim to be the largest manufacturer of audiophile quality vinyl records in the U.S.  Much of that growth will come organically but we will also consider a number of strategic acquisitions to be a more vertically integrated company.

Where is your company located?
2719-B Dorr Ave, Fairfax, VA 22031, 703-205-0007
www.furnacemfg.com