2009 Young Retailer of the Year Honoree
MARTY O'HARA
A New Direction
When Marty O’Hara decided to go full time in the family business, he knew he had big shoes to fill. His grandfather Martin opened a hardware store the small town of Ottumwa, Iowa, almost 70 years ago and created a strong retail presence that has stood the test of time. Martin’s son Mike later took over the business and went on to become the president of NRHA.
Now, as the third generation, the younger O’Hara has created his own benchmarks for future generations to follow. In three years he’s added two new locations to the O’Hara franchise and made it clear that’s only the beginning of his expansion efforts.
O’Hara has always loved hardware retailing. But after college his father advised him to get some experience outside of the hardware industry. It would make him a better businessman. So while he kept one foot in his father’s hardware store, O’Hara spent several years in commercial banking, then in commercial real estate.
Then in 2005, O’Hara got word that a hardware store in Albia, Iowa, just a few miles from Ottumwa, was closing. The building needed an overhaul, but he saw plenty of potential in the location. For the next five months he worked through every aspect of the renovation, from negotiating the purchase of the building to setting the last box of merchandise on the shelf.
On opening day, customers responded by warmly welcoming the new O’Hara store to the neighborhood. Every year since, sales have increased to the tune of 18 to 20 percent, and O’Hara and his staff stay actively involved in the community and participate in popular events like the Christmas Victorian stroll, where the front of a hardware store makes a perfect setting for Santa’s workshop.
Barely a year later, O’Hara decided to leave his real estate career and join his father, still active in the business, in running the family’s two stores. He also started looking for that third location. His search took him to Darien, Ill., where a failing hardware store had left a vacant building and a lucrative market in need of a new retailer. For Marty, the location offered a lot of promise and the building, once again, needed a complete overhaul.
Marty set to work. His real estate experience paid off as he negotiated a complicated lease agreement to acquire the store. Next he tackled a complete renovation of the building, and then a complete store set using his co-op True Value’s Destination design package. Training new employees, most of who had no previous experience in hardware retailing, was another piece of the puzzle.
O’Hara says he feels honored to be a part of the business established by his father and grandfather. While adding new locations may be taking that business in a new direction, there are some traditions, like the O’Hara commitment to keeping the store and staff actively involved in their community, that haven’t changed a bit.
“Hardware stores have always been pillars of the community,” says O’Hara, “and I think that’s still as important as it used to be. My grandfather left me some big shoes to fill, but I’m excited to be a part of that business.”