As Nelson's marks 70 years, owners consider move to 93

Nelson’s Ace Hardware has been a cornerstone of downtown for 70 years and its owners are planning ways for the business to remain a mainstay for Whitefish in the future.

Rick and Marilyn Nelson say they have decided to be proactive about expanding the business to meet the needs of the growing town with an eye on continuing the business’ commitment to the community. Nelson’s is looking at the potential to relocate to U.S. Highway 93 South as they look to pass ownership to the next generation.

“It’s been amazing to be able to be here through all the changes of the community,” Rick said. “We’ve been honored to have the support through several recessions and through changes that have brought big box stores to Kalispell.”

A number of factors are contributing to the potential move, but one of the top reasons is they lost the lease on a warehouse behind their store on Central Avenue. Over the many years in business they’ve also filled every corner of their current space trying to offer as much selection to customers as possible — in the early years there was two choices of hammers and today there’s roughly 20.

The Nelsons say they have a piece of property under contract where they would like to build a new hardware store. If things go as planned they expect to close on the deal this summer.

Marilyn says Ace stores all over the country continue to thrive and they expect the same from their own store, but that means looking toward the future. She says Nelson’s continues to grow in its business a little each year, and it wasn’t easy to think about relocating but the focus remains on being proactive for the future.

“The business model seems to work because we’re customer-focused,” she said. “People come in here when they need to talk to somebody. Hardly any multi-generation businesses make it. We have focused a lot of energy on making a successful transition.”

“We work one-on-one with customers,” adds Rick. “We solve problems and build relationships.”

The results of a marking study conducted by Nelson’s last year showed that customers want more product selection and improved parking.

In a larger space at the new store, they’d like to offer more product lines, add a garden center with live plants and lawnmowers, add a small engine repair shop and have the ability to sell bulk products without packaging. They say the need is critical to provide more parking for better service for those home improvement projects that can often mean multiple trips to the hardware store in one day.

Rick’s parents, Wilfred and Ruth Nelson, purchased Marshall Wells Hardware when they moved to Whitefish in 1947. Rick’s brother the late Don Nelson was partner in the store until he retired in 2005.

When they were young the brothers were known to play in a sandbox out back of the store and Ruth would go upstairs to the family apartment to put dinner in the oven before coming downstairs to work.

When Wilfred and Ruth purchased the store there were a half dozen other hardware stores in town, but only Nelson’s has remained.

On Friday morning, the family business model was ever apparent as Rick and Marilyn and their daughter Mariah Joos were all working side by side. The store employees about 25 people in the summer.

While her siblings have interest in the company, Joos is the only one who chose to make the hardware store her career.

Encouraged by her parents to find her own way, Joos says she left Whitefish after graduating high school and eventually moved out of state. But when it was time for her and her husband to raise a family they came back and she returned to the business.

“When I came home I wanted to work at the hardware store,” she said. “This is authentic human interaction.”

Joos remembers working in the store as a young child after school, just as all the past and current Nelson children have done.

“My dad had me line up the shelf dividers on the nuts and bolts,” she said. “It was probably to keep me busy.”

The family says they remain committed to the future of the hardware business, but also to the future of Whitefish.

Marilyn was recently appointed to the Highway 93 South Corridor Steering Committee that is charged with working to create a plan to guide the future of development along the corridor. Joos is serving on the Master Tourism Plan Committee that is expected to develop a long-term vision for the future of Whitefish’s tourism economy.

Marilyn says Nelson’s is looking to embrace the changes of the future. They hope to retain ownership of their current location and want customers to support whatever business is located there, along with all the businesses in the downtown.

The piece of property where they would build a new hardware store is in the WB2 or secondary business zone where a hardware store is a use by right.

“We think there is a synergy between the WB2 business district and downtown,” Marilyn said. “We each need to be supporting of each other. The WB2 is for businesses that need large displays and the downtown is for walkable retail.”

Nelson’s is planning a 70th anniversary celebration sometime in July.