A bio box for Koopman Lumber executives
Updated: 6 hours ago
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2025 Business Leaders of the Year
Business Leaders of the Year: Koopman Lumber's third generation reaches new heights
Photo | Matt Wright
(From left to right) Koopman Lumber Chief Operating Officer Tony Brookhouse, CFO Denise Brookhouse, and President & CEO Dirk Koopman
Since 1939, the Koopmans have been playing an integral role in building Central Massachusetts.
Now in its third generation of family ownership, Whitinsville-based Koopman Lumber has expanded from a single retail hardware store to a network of a dozen locations spread across Massachusetts, selling necessary construction materials and tools of the trade to everyone from do-it-yourselfers to the biggest professional contractors in the business.
Leading the firm’s 480 employees are President & CEO Dirk Koopman, CFO Denise Brookhouse (Dirk’s sister), and Chief Operating Officer Tony Brookhouse (Denise’s husband), who have cooperatively led efforts to double the size of the firm in the last five years.
Assisted by a non-family board of advisors from around the company, the trio have figured out how to manage both the interpersonal dynamics and the firm’s rapid growth, said Denise Brookhouse.
“We've learned to work together,” she said. “We know each other's strengths, how to play off those, so we're doing better at knowing which role everybody plays."
Whether it’s quick re-build of one of their most loyal customer’s New Hampshire lakehouse or prompt removal of excess material from busy jobsites — an easy-to-overlook aspect of keeping construction projects on track — Koopman works hard to go the extra mile, said Tony Brookhouse.
“That's something that's a big deal for us to get customers,” he said of the company’s ability to usually get excess lumber off-site within 72 hours, “because a lot of lumber yards will just let the stuff sit out there, and it doesn't last that long when it's out in the elements.”
“We have a mantra of wanting to say yes at any cost,” Dirk Koopman said.
Koopman Lumber is an integral part of the business community, said Jeannie Hebert, Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce president and CEO. The business’ support of the community at-large is what sets it apart.
“They support a lot of the community, and they've been very generous with their time and talent and also funding for a lot of projects,” Hebert said.
For example, Tony Brookehouse served as a co-chair for the capital campaign to support the construction of the Whitinsville Christian School’s $18.5-million athletic center in 2017, she said.
“Building that center has really helped the community, but the Koopman family as a whole has been in the valley for many, many decades. This generation has taken up the torch and with this sense of community and giving back,” Hebert said.
Despite the growth, the firm is always there to pick up the phone when the local community is in need.
“Whenever there's a project or something going on in the valley, when we need sponsorship or support, their name comes up, and they're reachable,” Hebert said.
While other family businesses in their industry get gobbled up by venture capital, Koopman Lumber’s increased buying power and national relationships have made it resilient, turning the firm into a key player in the New England construction space in the process.
“We belong to the largest lumber cooperative in the country, so we buy through that cooperative,” Tony Brookhouse said of the firm’s ability to navigate increased prices. “We have a very strong balance sheet, so we're able to leverage that when we need to make stands in the market and buy product. We have a big distribution center, 11 acres of just lumber, so we can store a lot of product.”
As the company grows, so does the family, helping to ensure the business lives on for a fourth generation and beyond.
“We're probably going to have six or seven [children] that want to come in,” Denise Brookhouse said. “So we want to keep expanding and keep growing the business to keep the next generations involved.”
Wanting to ensure future Koopman Lumber leaders in the family are well-balanced workers, the firm requires they spend at least four years working outside the firm before they can come back.
“They bring back some new outside ideas,” Dirk said, “and they learn the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.”
Koopman’s ability to keep on growing despite turbulence in the construction space is a testimony to its leadership and workforce, but the 86-year-old business founded by family patriarch Peter Koopman hasn’t forgotten its humble Whitinsville beginnings, said Denise.
“We haven't really forgotten our roots, which was, you know, to do-it-yourself remodelers, or just people coming into town for their snow shovels,” she said.
Eric Casey is the managing editor of Worcester Business Journal, where he primarily reports on the real estate and manufacturing industries.
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