Mark Bowe is a man’s man—he’s also the host of the nationally acclaimed Magnolia Network’s Barnwood Builders.
After working his way through college as a coal miner, he earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. Bowe also holds a master’s degree in Safety Management from West Virginia University’s College of Business.
Bowe is something of a renaissance man—a craftsman, a businessman, a historian, and a self-proclaimed break-dancer. He founded Antique Cabins and Barns in 1995 and in 2016 expanded the business to what is now known as Barnwood Living.
The show, Barwood Builders, on the Magnolia Network, became an almost overnight success.
“We did a pilot back in 2004. They wanted a little more drama, and if you can think back a few years, that’s what was happening—That was reality television,” said Bowe. “The thing is, we don’t fight. We actually enjoyed working with one another, and it took us ten years on a shelf before somebody finally said ‘We like those guys just like they are.’”
He and his longtime crew have reclaimed more than 500 pioneer-era structures.
“While we are team builders and restoration craftsmen, we’re just like the regular everyday person,” said Bowe. “We just have a lot of fun doing what we do.”
Barnwood Living believes in its product and its supporters—locating its success in the wide array of supportive fans and caring communities.
“If you don’t take pride in it, what’s the sense in doing it?” Said Bowe. “If you sell or service something, then you need to own it.”
Bowe is passionate about honoring the craft of America’s ancestral pioneers and is devoted to ensuring their hard work lives on for centuries to come.
If you’d like to keep up with Mark and Barnwood Living, you can visit www.barnwoodliving.com.
PWV QUICK BITS | MARK BOWE
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- PIECE OF ADVICE: “Work hard, be kind, and take pride,” advised Bowe.
