Over the years I have watched many lumberyards and hardware stores close their doors due to various reasons and no doubt in some part to the advent of box stores like Lowe’s and Home Depot. It is ironic that Lowe’s is the current owner of Orchard Supply. I can’t help but think that previous owner Sears and now Lowe’s took what was once a very successful business on the Peninsula and drove it into the ground (“Orchard Supply Hardware set to close” in the Aug. 23 edition of the Daily Journal).
Most Wednesdays I travel to the San Carlos Orchard Supply to visit. There is something special about Orchard Supply stores that give me a warm fuzzy feeling. I visit even though I own what I consider to be a very special hardware store and lumberyard in Mountain View. The Orchard Supply on Charleston in Mountain View has been a good neighbor to my business and often sends customers my way for products they do not stock, such as lumber. I must admit that nearby Lowe’s and Home Depot are good neighbors also.
For those of you who are too busy to support your local business and instead choose to buy online you are creating a problem for yourself further down the road, one which I will not go into.
“Buy local” is a message we often hear. Next time you order a product from Amazon, remember that local retail establishment you wish was still there when you need something now and how they went out of their way to do things that Amazon cannot, such as know your name.
If retail is only about price alone, then we have lost our way.
David- I completely agree- and I believe Lowe’s had joined the movement that Target, Walmart and Whole Foods have begun moving back to Downtown’s and neighborhoods with smaller stores being fed by the outskirt box boxes. Hopefully the other companies come in or small owners come back- I am heartbroken that new Execs at slowed changed their mind as I thought Orchard Supply was a pretty great example of how this could work. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/orchard-supply-hardware-say-aint-so-skip-middleton?trk=portfolio_article-card_title
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David- I completely agree- and I believe Lowe’s had joined the movement that Target, Walmart and Whole Foods have begun moving back to Downtown’s and neighborhoods with smaller stores being fed by the outskirt box boxes. Hopefully the other companies come in or small owners come back- I am heartbroken that new Execs at slowed changed their mind as I thought Orchard Supply was a pretty great example of how this could work. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/orchard-supply-hardware-say-aint-so-skip-middleton?trk=portfolio_article-card_title
There are many perfectly fine Ace Hardware Stores around that are helpful.
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Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.