What started as a hobby for Phil Pontillo has grown into a business with nationally sought-after products.  

Pontillo, of Whitefish, founded Pontillo Furniture Concepts to put his skills to use building custom furniture pieces. Now national outdoor company L.L. Bean is buying his products for many of its stores.

Pontillo designs display cases for fly-fishing flies, and L.L. Bean already has purchased 45 of these cases for stores across the country.

“It’s crazy to think that these are in the Mall of America,” Pontillo said, gesturing to a stack of drawers. “I never would have guessed that they would go that far.”

The poplar wood display cases are tall stacks of module drawers that contain divided sections to easily display each set of flies, with a layer of tempered glass on top. The system can be customized and allows the owner to add drawers for additional storage.

The movable drawer design came from a colossal accident when Pontillo tried to ship an original case designed as one full piece.

“When it arrived at the buyer’s house, it was literally smashed into pieces,” he recalled. “It was too heavy.”

The individual drawers make the product easier to ship, and allow the customer to customize their case. A hobbiest can have a case made of just a few drawers, while a company like L.L. Bean can build a larger case for retail use. As the collection grows, more drawers can be added.  

Each drawer is handmade individually in Pontillo’s Whitefish shop. The corners are connected with dovetail joinery, a sign of the high-end craftsmanship.

“These are made by one person, and they’re done by hand,” Pontillo said. “That’s what makes them such high quality, and that’s the way I plan to keep it.”

L.L. Bean executives saw Pontillo’s design online and in September ordered their first set of 15 cases for various stores in the eastern U.S. The project took him three weeks to complete.

“I was definitely on a mission to impress,” he said with a laugh. “I worked to get those out as quickly as possible.”

Now the popular company has ordered its second shipment — 30 additional cases — for more stores across the country.

Pontillo, originally from Syracuse, New York, moved to Whitefish in 1992. He worked as a pastry chef and combined elements of art and function to create beautiful, delicious desserts.

In 2000 he took up woodworking as a hobby and purchased an inexpensive table saw on which to learn. He quickly became passionate about woodworking and found the hobby similar to baking.

“With woodworking, you’re creating more than just something pretty to look at,” he said. “It’s a functional piece and I love that.”

Pontillo began creating custom jewelry boxes and fly containers, eventually moving up to cabinetry, desks, tables and more. As demand for his products grew, Pontillo opened Pontillo Furniture Concepts full time and now operates out of a shop in Whitefish.

Pontillo believes furniture should be designed around the look of the wood, so he rarely uses stain. Instead, he searches for unique wood with beautiful natural coloring or interesting patterns.

Most of his lumber comes from Glacier Hardwoods in Kalispell, and he is able to find a plethora of exotic woods such as ebony, Jatoba, or Brazilian cherry.

Pontillo Furniture Concepts has always been a one-man operation, and Pontillo is not looking to expand.

“I just want the business to grow naturally, and I want to be able to keep the same kind of handmade craftsmanship,” he said.

Pontillo is kept company daily by Morgan, his 16-year-old dog, who has his own bed and area in the woodworking shop.

“He’s been with me since the beginning, the whole time,” Pontillo said.

Pontillo is constantly taking on new custom projects for customers across the states. All of his business is done online, or by phone.

For more information, visit online at www.pontillofurnitureconcepts.com, or call 250-0658.

Reporter Brianna Loper may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at bloper@dailyinterlake.com.