For as long as he could remember, carpentry has been in Jeremy Johnson's blood.

"It was always a dream of mine to be a carpenter," he said. "I don't know who inspired it, but as a young boy I always liked to fiddle with wood."

Mr. Johnson said he studied his trade under the eye of a Mr. Castle at the old Technical School, while honing his skills with Clement Lespere.

In 1980, the 57-year-old married father of two began operating Jeremy Johnson's Village Carpentry, which is in the heart of the North Village community on North Shore Road in Pembroke. He currently has five employees.

While Mr. Johnson knew he would spend his working life in the carpentry field, he did deviate from the field once - in the early 70s - and worked in the entertainment industry.

"I was part-owner of a record store and talent agency.

"We wanted to have a music school as well. Our company was called JBJ Enterprises," he said.

"For one year we hosted the Battle of the Band and the Best of the Newcomers competitions."

But Mr. Johnson said the venture did not work out as he had hoped so he decided to re-enter his field.

In 1980, he jumped at the opportunity to buy his carpentry shop when the chance arose.

"I worked for George D. Trott at this location and when he decided to retire he came to me and asked if I was interested in buying it," he told The Royal Gazette.

"I was and I've been here ever since."

Mr. Johnson said his shop offers the whole gamut of wood products to his customers ranging from letter openers to board room tables.

"We custom-make items to our customers' specifications, using Bermuda cedar as well as other types of woods," he said.

But what has been one his most unique requests? "I was asked to make a miniature dollhouse with 18 rooms.

"It was six feet long and took three months to complete," Mr. Johnson said.

While the master carpenter called his field "very competitive", Mr. Johnson believed the trick to staying afloat was the ability to be an all-rounder.

"Sometimes you will make items in the carpentry shop, while at another time you may have to work on a construction site building door frames," he said.

And he admitted that a key component to being efficient in the trade was buying better machinery.

"The old equipment is not economically feasible anymore for mass production."

Mr. Johnson said besides offering custom-made items, he plans to open a cedar retail division of his store next month which will allow customers to purchase goods on the spot.

"The strategy is, because cedar being so scarce it would be easier to make smaller items such as souvenirs, picture frames and trophy bases," he said.

When asked whether he believed carpentry was becoming a dying trade, Mr. Johnson became pensive.

"It's definitely not as attractive as it was in the past. This concerns me because you really have to like the work to do the things we do."

But does he believe that re-introducing a technical school on the Island would revitalise interest?

"Not necessarily because most of the young kids today are looking for quick money."

And while he said he was unsure if his son would carry on the family business, Mr. Johnson said he was confident the carpentry shop would remain in operation: "Hopefully, one of the staff would be interested in carrying one the name, but most importantly, carrying on the trade."