I worked for this guy for a month and he never paid me, I'm currently in litigation with the labor commissioner regarding the wages he owes me. I mostly worked at the front desk but he also had me do some manual labor. Don't buy from him and support his shady business practices, Dennis is not a good guy and I'm not the only person hes exploited either, he also owes two of my other friends who have worked for him too. This is America, we don't support slave labor here. read more

Dennis, you never got a reply from me because I never got an email from you. As for the wood, it hasn't changed a bit in the past 6 months. I think it's ridiculous to think that anyone would be able to expose their hardwood floors to UV rays like that picture you posted. Unfortunatly, not many people I know have glass ceilings. And I find it very interesting that the one good review you got from "JA" was written on the same day as when you posted the comment to Rick D, and "JA" has had no other reviews on Yelp. Hey, I'm just sayin',.... read more

I was in the market for hardwood floors and decided to check out the floor stores on Jacuzzi Dr Richmond. ( I think that's the street name ) Anyways, I first checked out the larger store and while in there, the sales rep had made a negative comment about the other store on the same street. I can't stand when people down their competitors, no class at all. Anyways, I decided to visit the Sawmill. Sure the place is smaller, and visually the showroom options did not compare to the larger store, which for some reason was threatened by the smaller store. I immediately noticed the price tags on the displays were considerably less than the larger store. I then asked the sales rep a question about one of the floors, which led to a complete understanding of the floor differences. I mentioned that I visited the other store first, and the rep didn't make any negative comments and was just focused on helping me understand what my options were. A week later, after comparing floors and pricing at Home Depot, Lowes, and a few stores in Oakland and San Francisco, I found myself back at the Sawmill picking up my floors. One thing I suggest is to make sure you take proper measurements and only buy what you need. The receipt says something about no returns, which is how they are able to keep the prices low. Therefore, you're better off buying less, and coming back for more. Bottomline, I highly recommend the Sawmill for low pricing, quality floors, and great service. Ask for Dennis, you won't be disappointed. read more

The Sawmill made our floor shopping and purchasing experience an absolutely fantastic one. It's six months later, and I still look at our floor and think: "Wow! It's beautiful! And it was such a _fantastic_ deal!" Dennis is an absolute hoot--we had a great time talking with him, he was quirky (with a sense of humor that matches) and he let us take our time. We probably spent about an hour in there thinking (and overthinking.) He offered to let us take a few of the sample boards home to think about them, but then we looked over and saw a rich-looking, reddish solid hardwood acacia with a "special" sign on it. We asked how much it was, were pleasantly surprised, and decided to go with that one on the spot. He told us that that particular wood would have a _lot_ of color variation (which was true--we were glad he told us because it could have been disappointing if that wasn't what we wanted.) When we got home and realized that we wanted to do more of the floor in the acacia, we called and asked for some more to be added to our order, and that was no problem at all. As I said: it's been six months and we're thoroughly satisfied with our flooring. read more

The owner is clearly very knowledgeable about his products. He gave me a very important insight to the products which another popular store failed to share. Also his prices are much better here. You should check it out! read more

I stopped by to discuss flooring options with Dennis today. He is very knowledgeable, and spent a lot of time with me. It seems his many years of experience will be to my benefit. Over the years I have dealt with salespeople who knew less about flooring than myself. Very refreshing to be able to speak to Dennis today. read more

I don't write a lot of reviews, but I had to log into yelp and let people know about my experience. I just bought a condo and have been looking around for info on laminate and a place to buy it. I found this one laminate that I liked so I began to search the net for info. I came across sawmill flooring in my searches. They sell the brand I was looking at so I called them up. I spoke to a guy on the phone for a few minutes when he tells me they are closed can you call back during business hours. I didn't see store hours on the website when I looked so I didn't know. I thought it was a bit weird to blow me off, but I shrugged it off and called the next day. This is where the story gets good... I called around 11am, this time some guy that sounded young answered. I began to speak and he cut me off and says we don't open til 12. Ok, I'll call back then I told him... When I called back again I think I spoke to this person that answered the night before. I told him I was looking to buy something and try to get it soon. I told him this is the first time I'm doing this so I had some questions. He told me at one point he has a customer that just came into the store and can he take my name and number then he will call me back. This was a Sunday so when it got to be around 3:30pm I thought maybe I better call them back since I need to purchase quickly incase they have to order it. When I called, no one answered. Just a machine picked up. I hung up and thought I will try again since maybe they are busy. I called every half hourish I guess until about 6pm when someone picked up and yelled in the phone "OFFICE HOURS ARE CLOSED" then hung up the phone. Let me just say if a business will treat potential customers like that then run run run. don't walk, don't look back, just run away. This placed just saved me a lot of money. That just speaks volumes about how they run a business, and I bet I would have had noting but problems with them. Do yourselves a favor and don't bother going here. I'd rather pay more somewhere else for the piece of mind of knowing the place wont hang up on me down the road if I have a problem with something I purchased. think to yourselves if you had to call them about an issue with a floor you bought. If they wont talk to you, your stuck taking legal action and that's just a long drawn out process. save yourself the hassle and buy from somewhere else. read more

I was in the market for a bathtub. I took a trip to the sawmill to try and find one. Not only did they not have a bathtub, they only had flooring stuff. Who does that??? I will be taking my bathtub funds elsewhere. They even had the nerve to insult me, in front of my friend. "We don't carry bathtubs here" OF course you don't. I never said you did. I didnt even think you were that strong. To Dennis, You're right. I now see what I did was wrong. I never should have been looking for a new bathtub. I hope my new rating makes up for it. -Kev read more

Good product for a cheap price. They were super helpful with additional materials needed and being versatile about additional materials needed or returning extra. read more

Had only good experience with this company. We have just finished having four rooms of hardwod floors installed. When we visited their place, we received a thorough explanation of the types of flooring available, including types of wood. We liked a type of wood that we were told would vary quite a bit from piece to piece, and were shown samples of the variations. They indeed were quite different; we still liked the wood and bought it. This company does not install flooring, so they recommended two contractors to us. They offered to recomend a third if we wished. We obtained competitive bids and chose one contractor. The company worked with us and the contractor to ensure that the wood was properly installed, answering questions and offering advice over the phone even after we had paid for the wood. We have no reservations recomending this company as a place to purchase wood flooring. read more

Following much research and shopping around, we ended up choosing Sawmill flooring for our materials and installation (we had looked at Lowe's, Home Depot and Lumber Liquidators). The prices were much lower at Sawmill than the other places we looked. This is because Sawmill sells wholesale. Dennis, the owner, and Ray, his employee were very helpful. We were originally planning on getting solid wood Brazilian Koa (AKA Tigerwood), but Dennis convinced us to get the engineered Koa, which is actually quite a bit less expensive. Engineered looks exactly the same as solid, and is actually stronger, and less of it needs to ordered (less broken pieces). Our floors are beautiful and have received many compliments from our guests. The only reason that I am giving 4 stars, instead of 5, is that we had a bit of an issue with installation on transition pieces not being correctly installed the first round. It took about a half a days worth of back and forth phone calls between Dennis and his installer, and me and my contractors, to get the installer to come back and correct the issue. Despite the hassle, once I emailed Dennis photos of the issue, it was resolved satisfactorily. In the end, we got a great value and our floors look stunning. read more

Sawmill Flooring - Our beautiful Koa (Tigerwood) floors, courtesy of sawmill! - Flooring Near Me - Richmond, California

After a lot of pricing and driving around the entire bay for hardwood floors with mediocre results, a friend in the trades referred this place. I immediately yelped and was torn by the mixed reviews. I decided to look further for my own needs. I called and was greeted politely by Dennis. I explained to him what I was looking for and what my previous quotes were. His qoutes were MUCH less. I took the drive that day to meet Dennis and see what he had to offer. I was surprised that he had white oak hardwood for little more than the cheaper bamboo I was looking at. I took a sample home to the wife which she loved. I called Dennis back and asked point blank about his horrible reviews to which he was obviously perplexed. With a tone of concern and frustration he completely explained in detail the problems. I too am in the trades and the bottom line is some people can't be happy with anything. I gave him my CC number and ordered my floors. I cannot explain how awesome these floors are. BEAUTIFUL. Dennis is on the up and up for sure. Gonna order more for my house in a couple months. No more calling around because I already know that there is no place better in the bay than Sawmill Floors. read more

After looking at several flooring stores, went to Sawmill Flooring and was very impressed with the professional knowledge of Dennis. He patiently explained the different varieties of hardwood and laminates and I finalized for him to do the job. His men were there the next day on time and finished about 600 sqft in 2 days. The work done was very hign quality and their prices were very reasonable. In the end I had couple of extra boxes of laminate which I did not need and he gladly took them back and credited my account. Would highly recommed them. A job very well done. read more

This company has no customer service, well they have one but they are right and customer is wrong. I was sold flooring that was end scraps that were hidden in boxes. I took some of it back to figure out a solution. Not a chance you bought you own it. Never buy from this company. They are not ethical at all. I will be taking them to small claims court. read more

I can't say enough good things about this company. They are knowledgeable, friendly, and have the old-fashioned touch. They helped me find the flooring I had six years ago in a previous house. I searched all over the web and went to several local flooring stores, and either couldn't find it or the prices had more than doubled over the past six years. Well, Sawmill was able to get it for me, and they met the previous price. The installers layed my flooring throughout my house, and ran short in the room. Sawmill accomodated us the next morning! That's service! They are easily accessible off the freeway. It was a pleasure working with them. This is a good place to do business. Thanks, Gayle read more

Dennis is a lot of fun and a expert on hardwood floors. After purchasing acacia hardwood flooring at a fantastic price, my wife and I celebrated by enjoying pizza and beer with Dennis and his crew. We were very happy with the service and selection. read more

Excellent, FAST service and totally gorgeous installation. Dennis and Rithy (installer) have cheerfully worked together for years and I'd hire them again in a heartbeat. read more

Dennis was help with suggestions and help us find the perfect product for a rental home. He was patient while we decided and worked with us on a pick up time. Everything looked fantasic installed and Dennis has made himself available for any questions, even after the sale was complete! read more

If you are in the market for hardwood floors do not bother checking out the big name stores, the super special blow out sales etc. We have been in the market for hardwood floors three times of the last four years and ALWAYS received the best quality and prices at the Sawmill in Richmond. Dennis and his staff have been very helpful along the way, once we actually shipped the floors to Germany for a house we have there. I can only highly recommend this place, all they do is wood and they do know their stuff. Yes their return policy is tough, but something has to give in order to offer these prices. We installed our floors ourselves and they gave us a lot of pointers unlike other stores that basically tell you that you have to hire a professional installer. Nobody beats Sawmill. read more

The owner, proprietor. Dennis, is rude. I bought some maple engineered wood, and was short a bit to finish the project. I bought another load not long after and it didn't match. The thickness was different, and coloring as well. The pieces did not click together correctly- stay level. I tried to return the new batch and suddenly "friendly" Dennis couldn't be reached. When I finally got hold of him after repeated attempts of stopping by and phone calls in which he was never there or busy (but never called me back) it was past the 30 day return policy. I let him know I had tried to get hold of him and he screamed at me, said I was F**. He later apologized in writing to my father (the guy writing the checks), but never addressed his apologies to me. The floors later were dinged easily, and discolored after they were installed (his materials seem really cheaply made imports). I admit this happened a while ago, but I will always remember this guy as turning rude on a dime, and one of the most unprofessional vendors I have ever worked with. I am disappointment to see he is still in business --especially when I see all these other negative reviews (most of which he hides-- read more