<\/p>\n
Two tenets of business have kept one of Durango\u2019s oldest businesses, Kroegers Ace Hardware, vibrant since its founding 100 years ago: a willingness to adapt to change and a belief in putting the customer first.<\/p>\n
Those two principles have driven the store since it was founded in August 1921, when Fred W. and John Kroeger bought the old Farmers Supply Co. and added hardware, paint, lawn and garden supplies and water systems \u2013 creating the store Durangoans recognize today.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody asks: Wow, how can a business survive for 100 years?\u201d said Joel Krueger, who owns the store with his wife, Margie. \u201cIt\u2019s because it\u2019s not the same business today. You have to be able to change, to decide which direction you want to go. You can\u2019t say, \u2018We\u2019re going to hold our ground and stay the same.\u2019 The world will move on without you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Krueger, whose last name is confusingly similar to Kroeger, is not related to the founding brothers. He and his wife, Margie, bought the store in 2006 from Jim and Cindy Wendt, who had previously acquired the store in the mid-1990s from Fred V. Kroeger, the son of Fred W. Kroeger.<\/p>\n
Krueger, who moved to Durango in 1991, got a job at Kroeger Hardware and worked briefly for Fred V. Kroeger while he was in the process of selling the business to the Wendts.<\/p>\n
Through the years, the hardware store has added services like store pickup, free in-town delivery and assembly to match services increasingly common first among big chains and now with Amazon.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re probably never going to be the first on something new, but we\u2019re sure as heck not going to be more than second or third,\u201d Krueger said. \u201cWhen we see something new that\u2019s right for us, we\u2019re going to try it and find a way to make it work for us.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 2001, Kroegers Hardware affiliated with Ace Hardware, the largest dealer-owned hardware cooperative in the world. Becoming a member of a cooperative allowed Kroeger to keep its small-town independent roots while giving it access to economies of scale \u2013 allowing it to stay price-competitive with larger chains.<\/p>\n
Membership in Ace gives Kroegers the benefits of national advertising, allows it to buy products at scale, and gives the store access to the co-op\u2019s computer network and web services.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe couldn\u2019t do what we\u2019re doing without a co-op behind us,\u201d Krueger said. \u201cBasically, what the co-op is, is strength in numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ordering 50 hammers for a single store, for example, it would be impossible to compete with the Home Depots and Walmarts of the world, Krueger said. With Ace, Kroegers is now able to place an order for hammers with the other 4,500 other independent hardware stores that are Ace members.<\/p>\n
Ace provides the software that allows Kroegers to track inventory, it provides the credit card processing for the store and Kroegers\u2019 website is under the Ace umbrella.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re using Ace\u2019s ecommerce system, but it\u2019s our inventory,\u201d Krueger said.<\/p>\n
While the cooperative model allows Kroegers to compete with Home Depot, it still unlikely to be the lowest-cost option.<\/p>\n
Krueger said that is why his store has to be the top option for customer service.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we were a clothing store, I don\u2019t think we could do this,\u201d Krueger said. \u201cClothing is clothing. We can offer advice to get the right product. We can provide advice to help people replace a faucet for the first time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Theresa Boomer, who was shopping at Kroegers on Wednesday, says she likes the smaller size of Kroegers compared with chain stores and she appreciates the helpful staff and the downtown location.<\/p>\n
Also, she said the COVID-19 pandemic that has disrupted lives and economies has illuminated the importance of shopping locally.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis past crazy year has made me more aware of how vital it is to support local business, and that most certainly attracts me to check out Kroeger\u2019s first,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m happy to spend an extra buck there to support a local business \u2013 on top of all the other positive reasons to shop there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kroegers hasn\u2019t finalized plans to celebrate its 100th anniversary. But it is looking to hold some type of event in the fall, hopefully at a time when the novel coronavirus is in full retreat and when larger public gatherings are allowed.<\/p>\n
The amount of sales at Kroegers purchased by the agricultural community has decreased over the years, but an increasing amount of sales is being taken up by newcomers, especially people with second homes, vacation homes and those fleeing cities.<\/p>\n
Krueger said: \u201cIt\u2019s heightened our need to make sure our employees are trained enough to offer advice and to know when not to offer advice because someone wants to replace an electrical outlet, but they don\u2019t know how to take the cover plate off. We tell them, \u2018I don\u2019t think you ought to do that. Find somebody to do it for you.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Kroegers employs 40 people, 30 of them full-time. The company starts employees at $15 an hour, offers health insurance, a 401(k) plan and two weeks a year paid vacation.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor retail, you\u2019re not going to get rich, but you should be able to make a good living, and we want our employees to find a home here,\u201d Krueger said. \u201cWe like to think of ourselves as a family.\u201d<\/p>\n
Treating employees right is fundamental to keeping a staff that\u2019s knowledgeable and helpful when dealing with home projects.<\/p>\n
Krueger believes Durango\u2019s growing number of second-home owners, newcomers fleeing cities and the popularity of do-it-yourself projects \u2013 something that\u2019s aided by YouTube videos \u2013 will provide Kroegers with a growing number of customers it can continue to serve, perhaps not for another 100 years, but well into the future.<\/p>\n