About Rust and Oak

     Rust and Oak was a passion project from the start. Mike Polivka, President of the company, had grown with a love for construction and hard work. From a young age, Mike was fortunate enough to work on family properties and get his hands dirty.  This teenage career of manual labor and hard work helped spark a fire within Mike that will speak volumes in the years to come.

 

After graduating from Illinois State University in 2012, with a degree in Construction Management, Mike set off to become a Project Manager for Commercial - Industrial Construction. While committed to his full-time job, the initial growth of Rust and Oak began to sprout. This un-named side hustle slowly took shape from 2012 to 2014.

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As his passion grew, so did the need for the name of this side business. In 2014, Rust and Oak was born. This small woodshop quickly evolved from a shed to a two-car garage in 2016 which helped Mike take on even larger projects. From a two-car garage to an even larger workspace, Mike was fortunate to launch into the Commercial field in 2018 and 2019 when he partnered with a National Signage Vendor, Corporate Sign Systems in Roselle, IL.   

 

In 2020, Mike has decided to dive into woodworking and interior design full-time. After Dissolving the partnership in order to focus on his passion full time, there has been many changes in order to get Rust and Oak back up and running on it's own!

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Now, looking forward to 2021, we're going to expand to the South West in sunny Arizona! We're beyond excited to start a new chapter of our lives and see what Rust and Oak can evolve into!

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Mike couldn't have imagined that he would be where he is today. He owes it to all of his loyal customers for believing in his dreams and allowing him to help bring their ideas to life!

 

Follow along on our social media for what's to come in this awesome journey! 

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