By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
ELLIS — On the corner of Washington and 10th in Ellis sits an unassuming building that has been a center of activity for area residents for longer than the town has existed.
But by the end of June, Trio Home Center, home to a lumberyard dating back to 1878, will close its doors.
Shortly after, the building will be razed to make room for a Dollar General.
Rather than lament the shifting nature of business and the end of an era, co-owner Glen Keller is happy that an arrangement could be made that will bring new employment opportunities and the possibility of more residents shopping locally.
In August 1972, Keller, along with business partners Ernie Fink and Dave McDaniel, took over the business — at the time named Ellis Trio Lumber and Building Center.
The three men met at Bethany College in Lindsborg, with Keller being the only one of the three from Ellis. After determining the venture to be worthwhile and finding local support, the men took ownership from a third generation of the Nicholson family, who had owned and operated the business since its founding.
"We are leaving a legacy for the community a little bit, in that we are getting a new building in our downtown area ... which doesn't happen often in a small community," Keller said.
He said demolition will start right after the transfer of ownership, making way for the new building.
"So this will probably be gone by the end of July or August," Keller said.
After almost 50 years of ownership and around a year of thinking it over, he said the decision to sell was difficult, but it simply came down to business.
The building needs about $80,000 worth of maintenance, he said.
"We didn't want another deteriorating building in the community."
Yet, it will be a strange sight once the building is gone, he said.
As word of the sale spread, conversations with community members have demonstrated how much of an icon the building is in the small community.
"Many of the younger people that live here and grew up here, this is all they have known, so they are even more attached to it than we are in some respects," Keller said.
The sale
A couple of years ago, Keller and McDaniel noticed a couple of people taking interest in the building, walking around taking pictures. The unusual occurrence was soon forgotten, until last February when someone from a Kansas City development company inquired about the possibility of selling the building.
It wasn't the first time someone showed interest in the location, but with all previous inquires a deal was never completed.
They found the company does development work for Dollar General and was interested in a downtown location large enough for ample parking — and the site fit the bill.
So, as the remaining partners in the business, Keller and McDaniel, knew they couldn't go on forever, and with the amount of repairs needing to be made in the building, they accepted the offer, understanding it is in the best interest of themselves and the city.
"We won't have that opportunity too many times again," Keller said.
A new way to buy
"Over the years, we have heard from many in the community, because we are attuned to the community quite a bit, they always say that they wish they had a Dollar General," Keller said.
So in the time they spent making the decision, they traveled to other small towns to see how Dollar General affected the community, to ensure the benefits of having a Dollar General in town would be beneficial to the community and other business owners.
"The majority of those have survived and thrived because they have learned to adapt to that," Keller said. "If you supplement yourself well to the Dollar General business, you can survive."
He said there will always be some overlap between businesses so before they made their decision they spoke to the owners of the Ellis Hometown Food Center to ensure they knew what would be coming and could adapt.
"Our goal was not to run another business out of town, it was to try to find something that we could supplement together," Keller said.
And by having the Dollar General in Ellis, he said the hope is more people will shop locally.
He said as Ellis residents travel to Hays or WaKeeney to shop stores like Dollar General, they also pick up goods from other stores. So with the location in town, it can help motivate residents to buy more locally.
"Hopefully if they shop Dollar General here, and they need produce or something, they can go down to the local store and buy it rather than driving over to Hays for that," Keller said. "We hope it will be a positive thing for the community."
For small towns like Ellis, the challenge is to keep as many dollars in town as possible, Keller said.
"Local people have to remember to shop locally," he said. "What that returns to the community is beyond anyone's imagination. It's unbelievable what that returns to the community."
Keller attributes changing buying habits to people willing to travel more to get less.
"We are more mobile society today," he said, which makes it more difficult to be competitive today than when they started.
That frequent travel has contributed to difficulties with small-town businesses just trying staying afloat as buying habits shifted to big-box retailers, and ultimately online, he said.
"People just don't realize what a business in a small town generates for that small town," Keller said.
Not just yet...
Even though the Trio Home Center will be gone after July 1, Keller and McDaniel are not ready to throw in the towel just yet. They will open Trio Hometown Supply just down the street shortly after they move out of the building.
The new business will not have lumber, sheetrock or cement, but will offer hardware, appliances, paint and sundries.
"I look at it this way," Keller said. "We are opening up a book, turning the page and starting a new chapter."
By opening the business in conjunction with the new Dollar General, they believe they are creating more local economic opportunities.
"So we are creating two businesses. Their business will hire anywhere from eight to 10 people, so it will be an employment opportunity thar you don't get every day in a small town," Keller said. "We believe in small communities and small business and therefore we are staying in that position."
With the new venture, Keller hopes to continue seeing the support from the community that kept the lumberyard open for nearly a century and a half.
"We have many good customers that have been very supportive over the years and we hope to continue that support in the new location," he said.
Over the decades, Keller said a lot of blood, sweat and tears have gone into keeping their business open, but it all comes down to three things and they will never change, no matter the business.
"If you offer service, convenience and quality, you will survive and that's what we have tried to do," he said. "It always comes down to that."