Hardware Hank’s owner and County Commissioner Corey Kirsch confirmed that the sale of his Main Street business closed on Mar. 8. The store will be rebranded as Boulder Hardware under the ownership of Boulder Mayor Rusty Giulio.
“Between my work at the courthouse and the other hats I wear, it’s hard to run a business,” said Kirsch. “For a few reasons, we were thinking we’d need to shut down, but Rusty stepped up and said we don’t want this to go away.”
Kirsch’s family has owned the store since 1972, originally under the stewardship of Kirsch’s father, David Kirsch. David Kirsch originally sold clothing and other home goods in the store, as the roads to Butte and Helena were largely dirt and made journeying significantly more challenging. Over the course of his 25-year tenure, the store became increasingly focused on supplying hardware and maintenance goods.
“There are few d*** trees around here that are older than I am!” said David Kirsch. “Corey has worked for me since I was knee high, and he’s done well since I sold the store to him. But, in my time, maybe 50% of the businesses in this community have been gutted; we’ve got to get some kind of activity going here to be successful.”
Giulio said he will expand the store’s inventory to include animal feed, clothing, and recreation items (such as bicycles). He also plans to expand services to include lumber supply and other construction materials, and potentially refurbish the upstairs living space to create temporary housing for tourists and visitors.
“When I approached Corey, it was as mayor, and I asked him how I could help him stay open,” said Giulio. “We couldn’t have another empty business on Main Street, and I wanted to see what could be done to make things easier for him. He said, buy it.”
Giulio added: “This is about protecting our way of life in western Montana, our local economy, and trying to supply something to our community we don’t currently have.”
Giulio will take over the store’s existing inventory and internal business systems, while replenishing future stock through Do it Best, a hardware, lumber, and building materials cooperative based in Fort Wayne, Indiana. On Mar. 4, Do it Best announced a merger with United Hardware, which was servicing the Kirsch family store under the Hardware Hank’s brand prior to its sale.
“Our prices will come down a bit, and we’ll be able to get some more variety in here,” said Sherry Kenda, an employee under Corey Kirsch who is continuing with the business under Giulio’s ownership. “I think this is really good for Boulder.”
