SMYRNA, Ga. — A hardware store in Cobb County is celebrating 75 years of serving the community this fall.
But this year, the owner of Smyrna business Vickery Hardware says it’s anything but business as usual.
Susan Harlan, who owns Vickery, told Channel 2’s Lori Wilson she hopes her company can ride out the tariffs and get back to a good economy.
“We meet you at the door, and we try to give the best customer service we can,” Harlan said.
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That’s why to her, the tariffs on products she imports from China is personal.
“We are holding a line on our prices, as much as we can,” Harlan said.
She said her store has seen its share of ups and downs ,they even survived Home Depot.
“Yeah, there were some tough years, but we did,” Harlan said.
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The store survived by shifting its focus to sell smaller specialty items. Harlan told Channel 2 Action News that she’s been warned by her suppliers to stock up, but with a 10,000 foot store, there’s not much room for that.
Instead, Harlan spends a lot of time these days analyzing the cost of every item and her narrowing margins.
“I have to stay in business, but I want my customers to be able to buy things as reasonably as they can too,” Harlan said.
In the meantime, she says service is what keeps her business busy.
“We’re gonna help you solve your problem, if you come to us with a leaking drain, we know what that is, we know what you need to fix it,” Harlan said. “We can help you get on your way.”
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