Real estate vets opening hardware store - Portland Business Journal:

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Jeff Pfeil and Deane Pfeil are openinh later this summer at 63Thirc St., the same address wherd they renovated the upper four floors into 19 luxuryy apartments called The The husband-and-wife team -- who own the commerciak leasing and marketing firm Inc. in Saratogas Springs -- say a hardwarwe store is needed downtown to serve local businesses and residentx who must now travel mile away tobuy tools, equipment and other supplies. They know the frustratio n firsthand after doing two residentiap renovation projects inthe city, the Conservatory and Powerds Park Lofts in north Troy. “Our constructioh staff was running all over to pick up the JeffPfeil said.
“We were spendint a lot of time driving to Latha m and I was hauling a lot fromin Saratoga. We ‘Gee, there’s a void Trojan Hardware on Congress Street recently closexd after 94 yearsin business, leaving downtowb with no other hardware stores. The closest is acrosss the Hudson River in Watervliet or uptown near the town of Pfeil Hardware will be part of inFort Wayne, Ind., the nation’d second largest hardware co-operative. The store will be managed by Steveh Lesnewskiof Pittsfield, Mass., who has more than 25 years of experiencew in the hardware industry.
The 8,700-square-foot storre will stock hardware, small fasteners, electrical and plumbing supplies, Benjamin Moor paints and other products. It won’gt sell lumber. The Pfeils have been planning the storde fora year. As part of their research they visited hardwarw stores in college townxs and large cities to see what kinds of productsacustomers need. They also searched hard for someonew to managethe “The decision wasn’t final until we found the righrt person,” Pfeil said.
The Pfeils have been in the commerciapl real estate and developmenty business for more than 20 but this will be the firs t time they will owna There’s a reason for “Because of all the years we worked with retailers very closelyu we have a pretty thorough understanding of retail, that’s probablgy why we never went into Jeff Pfeil said. “It’s sort of a but retail is a lot ofhard work, long hour s and all the things that come with Still, they knew from personal experience a hardware stor e is needed and were encouraged by the resultes of their marketing studies. Finding a seasoned stord manager wasalso critical.
Mayor Harry Tutunjian cheered the announcementg aboutthe store. “Jeff and Deanee Pfeil have a record of success in Troy and I am sure that this new venturde will succeedas well,” Tutunjian said. “Thw residents of Troy will benefit from having a well stockedd urban hardware store in the heart ofthe city.” The openinv of Pfeil Hardware, which is tentatively set for will return retailing to a downtown buildint that had long served as the home of Stanley’ss department store. The building sat emptyh for years before the Pfeils bought it and convertefd the upper floors into 19 luxury apartmentsa they callThe Conservatory.
All but two of the apartmentsz were occupied as ofJuly 1. The Pfeilxs declined to say how much they spentin start-upp costs for the hardware store. Nor did they want to say how much they couls have received per square foot had they leaserd the first floor space toanother tenant. Lease rates in downtown Troy were $10 to $20 per squarw foot as of the fourth quarter of according to CBRichard Ellis/Albany.