While I was growing up, just north of Hamilton, Ontario, my local hardware store — the place my Dad would take us on Saturday mornings to buy WD-40 or window putty or large carriage bolts — was Weeks Home Hardware. Back in those days their store was housed in a rambling collection of hundred-year-old stone buildings on the banks of Grindstone Creek.
Sometimes, if you needed to buy something extra special, like window screens or copper pipe or glass, you had to go down into their basement workshop; this was at once facsinating and terrifying. From my wee eyes, it appeared that you could buy anything at Weeks. And I’m sure that was almost true.
When I was in grade 9, I won the “Weeks Shield” — for “proficiency,” whatever that meant — and the prize itself was an illustrated dictionary signed by one of the Weeks brothers. For me, this was like a sporty kid getting a prize autographed by Cal Ripken Jr. I still have the dictionary sitting on the shelf beside me.
A couple of years after I left home, Weeks opened a brand new store, the size of a Canadian Tire, up and around the corner from their original location. Their atmosphere plumetted when the did this — hard to recreate that “old time hardware store” feel in a big box — but all reports are that they still have the selection, and the expert staff, and are doing quite well.
 Still from Moses Media-produced commerical. |
Which brings me to mention Southport Home Hardware, just across the river from us in Stratford. Owned by the APM Group, a sort of Island-style conglomerate that certainly has its detractors, this hardware store — and it’s really more of an appliance, building supply, housewares, lumber and hardware store — comes about as close to Weeks as I’ve ever seen. They have great, helpful staff, excellent selection of just about anything you would ever want, and, as of last year, a bright new large location that somehow manages to feel small and neighbourhood like.
If you live in or around Charlottetown, and you need nails or motor oil or a new oven, I’d suggest you drop in for a visit.
About This Blog
I am Peter Rukavina and this is my blog. I am a writer, letterpress printer, and a curious person.
To learn more about me, read my /now, look at my bio, listen to audio I’ve posted, read presentations and speeches I’ve written, or get in touch (peter@rukavina.net is the quickest way).
You can subscribe to an RSS feed of posts, an RSS feed of comments, or a podcast RSS feed that just contains audio posts. You can also receive a daily digests of posts by email.
Comments
Since we’re discussing
Since we’re discussing wonderful hardware stores, let me mention the Home Hardware on Kent Street in downtown Charlottetown. It looks small - but I have yet to go in there and not have the very helpful staff dig up what I need from the shelves or from some mysterious place in the back. This Home Hardware reminds me of the stores of MY youth…cramped, but bursting with surprises. And it has the advantage of being downtown, which is a place I like to shop.
Ditto on the down town HH.
Ditto on the down town HH. The staff is excellent and, says A.J. (the owner), has less turnover than most. As for the southport HH, I just hope they don’t have the same guy in the lumber yard that was soooo incredibly rude the time I went for some Arborite laminate a few years back — that was before APM bought the franchise. I had been a regular visitor for years but that experience was enough to keep me out of the store for nearly three years (up until six weeks ago when I bought some canoe paddles which was an altogether pleasant experience).
Add new comment