Inside the workshop: how a garage actually gets made.
What happens between an order arriving and a piece leaving Warsaw. No marketing. Just the process — the material, the sequence, and the moment the name goes on.
Why this takes time
Three to seven days is not slow. It is what the process actually requires.
The most common question we get before a first order is some version of: why does it take that long? Amazon delivers the next day. The supermarket has something similar on the shelf. What is happening in those days that could not happen faster?
The honest answer is that a made-to-order wooden garage built from birch plywood, with LED wiring, water-based finishes, and a carved nameplate, cannot be assembled in an afternoon. Each piece is built after the order arrives. There is no production line, no warehouse of finished pieces, no generic output that gets relabeled. The three to seven days is the time the piece genuinely needs to exist. This is what that time looks like.
The process
What happens between the order and the parcel.
Seven steps. Each one happens in sequence. None can be skipped or compressed without affecting the result.
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i
Material selection.
We work with birch plywood throughout — the same grade across every piece. Birch is chosen because it holds a clean edge when cut, takes paint evenly without grain bleedthrough, and is dense enough to feel substantial in the hand without being heavy enough to be impractical in a child’s bedroom. Each sheet is checked before cutting. Pieces with visible delamination or uneven surface do not go into the production queue.
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ii
Cutting and profiling.
The structural panels — sides, top, internal shelving, ramp surfaces, slot dividers — are cut to dimension. The slot profiles that hold individual cars are cut with consistent spacing so a Hot Wheels car sits flush without rattling. The ramp angles are set to allow a car to roll freely without needing a push. This is not an arbitrary aesthetic decision — the physics of a ramp that works on the first try is built into the cut.
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iii
Sanding.
Every surface that a child will touch gets sanded. Edges, slot openings, ramp surfaces, the face of the nameplate panel. We sand in stages — rough grit first to remove any machine marks, then finer grits to achieve the surface the finish will go over. The goal is a surface that feels like furniture rather than a toy. This takes more time than it sounds like it should. Corners and internal edges are sanded by hand.
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iv
Assembly.
The structure is assembled and squared. Slots are checked against a real 1:64 car — the car goes in and comes out cleanly, without force, without looseness. Opening door mechanisms are fitted and checked. The drawer slides on Arkiv pieces are aligned and tested for smooth pull and positive stop. An assembled garage that does not pass the car test gets disassembled and the affected slot is corrected before reassembly.
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v
Finishing.
Paint and oil finishes are water-based throughout — no solvent-based products on pieces that go into children’s bedrooms. The finish goes on in layers, with drying time between coats. Colour consistency is checked against the reference sample for each finish. The Wine, Olive, Beige, White, Mint, Sky Blue, Rainbow, Graphite, Mincrete, and Concrete finishes each have a reference standard. If the coat does not match, it is sanded back and reapplied.
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vi
LED wiring.
Where the specification includes LED lighting — the 91-slot, the 94-slot, and the Arkiv display tier — the wiring is installed after the finish is dry. The circuit runs along the top of the main display bay and, on the 94-slot, a second circuit runs into the car wash bay independently. Both are tested before the piece moves to the nameplate stage. The switch is positioned so a child can operate it without adult assistance.
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vii
The nameplate.
The last step before packing. The child’s name — taken directly from the order, spelled exactly as the parent wrote it — is carved into the front face of the nameplate panel. The carving goes into the wood before any sealing coat is applied to the nameplate face, so the finish goes over the edges of the carving and locks it in. The name will not peel, fade, or wear. It is part of the piece in the same way the joint at the corner is part of the piece. After the nameplate is done, the garage is packed and collected.
The nameplate is the last step because it is the most specific. Everything before it could belong to any garage. The name makes it belong to one child.
— A note from the workshop
On the material
Why birch, and what it means for the life of the piece.
Birch plywood is not a compromise material. It is the right material for this application because of specific properties: it machines cleanly, glues well, paints without grain bleedthrough on the face veneer, and is dimensionally stable — it does not warp or swell the way solid timber can in a centrally heated room. A toy garage in a child’s bedroom goes through years of temperature and humidity cycles. The material has to tolerate them.
The finish is water-based because we want it to be. Not because of a certification or a marketing claim — because solvent-based finishes do not belong in a room a child sleeps in. Water-based paint and oil take longer to dry and require more coats for the same coverage, which is part of why the production time is what it is. The result is a surface that is durable, cleanable, and does not off-gas after the piece is in the room.
The practical consequence of birch and water-based finish is this: the piece that arrives in the parcel looks and feels like furniture. Not like a toy assembled from MDF and spray paint. The weight is right, the edges are right, the surface holds up to daily contact from a child who puts their cars away and takes them out and puts them away again. This is the argument for the material. Not the label. The result.
The nameplate is not applied to the piece. It is carved into it, before the final coat goes on. The name is sealed under the finish, not sitting on top of it.
On made to order
What “made to order” actually means for the piece you receive.
Every piece we make is built after the order arrives. There is no warehouse of finished garages waiting for names. The 91-slot garage that ships this Friday did not exist last week. It was cut, assembled, sanded, finished, wired, and named after the order came in. This is not a marketing distinction. It has practical consequences for the piece.
A made-to-order piece is built to the current specification. If we have improved the LED circuit, the revised version is in the next piece that ships — not in the next batch six months from now. If a finish formula changes, the change is immediate. There are no old-stock pieces sitting in a warehouse at the previous specification. What you order today is what the workshop is building today.
The trade-off is time. Three to seven days is the honest production window. It is not a buffer padded for safety. It is the time the steps above actually take. For a birthday or a specific date, placing the order ten to fourteen days ahead is the right call. For an urgent need, the ready-to-ship lineup exists — pieces that are finished and waiting, for the times when the calendar does not allow the production window.
What leaves the workshop
The pieces, built one at a time
Each made to order. Each personalized before it ships.
Stage 02 · 91 slots
The Arkiv White — 91 Slots
Birch plywood, water-based white finish, LED system, carved nameplate.
Stage 03 · 94 slots
94-Slot Garage — Rainbow
Dual LED systems, working car wash, 94 slots. Carved nameplate on the front.
Stage 04 · With drawers
The Arkiv Wine — With Drawers
Display tier, LED system, three 11L drawers, carved nameplate. The full build.
Made in Warsaw. Built for one child.
Every piece made to order, personalized before it ships, delivered across the EU. Three to seven days in the workshop — place the order ten to fourteen days ahead for a specific date.
Browse All Garages Ready to Ship