Mourning the loss of the local hardware store
by UffaDave
I opened the latest issue of the Aurora Advocate and was saddened to see the closing of another American institution – the local hardware store.
Gerry Burger and his brother Greg announced that they would be closing the Aurora Burger’s hardware store at the end of February. Such a shame, the store was only 32 years old.
But I don’t suppose many in the community will really take notice of the passing, they’re too busy running off to the big box stores that presently populate the former harness-racing track converted to another concrete kingdom of consumer worship.
And I too will now be going off to Home Depot for my hardware needs. But I won’t be too happy that I have to go there. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I dislike Home Depot and Lowe’s and the other gargantuan mega-stores, it’s that they don’t, and can’t, fulfill the same need provided by the locally owned hardware store.
I know that I can get just about everything I need at the mega-stores that I could get at my local hardware store, well, that is if I want it in lots of five, ten, or more. But more often than not I can’t get just what I need. What if I want one specific bolt and nut and what if I want to return it because I got the wrong size – at my local hardware store I walk in, make the exchange and go on, nothing to it.At the mega-store I have to deal with the red tape of exchanges,receipts and so on. It becomes more of a headache than it’s worth.Beyond the convenience however, there are little things I will miss.
I will miss the personal attention and customer service. At the local store they know my lawn mower, my chainsaw, snow thrower, and just about any tool I’ve purchased or had serviced there. The big box, they’re too uninterested to get to know me and my quirky needs. When they do turn their attention to me (if I can find someone to give me their attention) they usually have no idea how to begin helping me accomplish my quirky tasks.
But what I’ll really miss the most from my local hardware store a knowledgeable hardware man who applies his ingenuity and creatively to solving some of the unusual fixit problems I regularly encounter in everyday life. The mega-store guys are no match for the local hardware man.
I will take some time to walk through the aisles one more time and find what I can. And I will mourn its passing when it closes.
Uffa Dave has got me thinking about this loss.
In these days of marketeers selling the “shopping experience,” the focus seems to be on selling the experience rather than the products.
To me the experience of the local hardware store included seeing the familiar faces behind the counter. But i particularly liked watching the local high school kids eagerly asking if you, the middle-aged guy needed any help.
Even though it was the kind of store that the regular customer knew were everything was, like an extension of their garage, (except they had to pay for the stuff) I’d often accept the kids help and ask a dumb question now and then just to just to watch them think. Here they were, on their own, fielding questions about electricity, plumbing, and powertools and pesticides.
It seemed they were racing toward a manhood fraternity every time they could use their newly learned fix-it skills.
The big box stores don’t hire the high school kids in such a mature and responsible role. If they do hire them I think they keep them away from the customers and relegate them to janitorial chores. Those stores seem to hire mostly middle-aged guys, especially those who have been downsized, or changed careers.
Gerry often had more kids there on Saturdays than he needed. Maybe that hastened the closing. But i think he knew that he was having a lifetime effect on those guys.
To all
I have nothing but fondness for everyone who has come through the door. It’s funny how you dont know you will miss something untill it is gone.
It wasn’t like work, it was like hanging out with all of your friends. Talking about the projects you had to do, or just did.
I will miss you all. But I wont be far.
If anyone needs anything just call me.
Fritz L. Miller: Manager
Burger’s Ace Hardware
Home 330-562-5723
Store till Feb 28th 330-562-5151
Brave On
Home Depot, Lowes
REVCO killed my father’s drugstore business back in the 70’s
It seems to be an endless progression of the independent business man eaten up by chains.
Listen to: A Month of Sundays by Don Henley