MEMO BLOG Memo Calendar Memo Pad Business Memos Meals on Wheels Letters Home
FEATURE ARTICLES

Fritz comes through with two new east Portland parks for you

Foreclosure on squat house proceeding

Parkrose closer to outsourcing student transportation



Man who inspired homeowner bill dies

How do Mid-county restaurants rate?

Oregon Lottery in Mid-county

Parkrose February Athletic Schedule



MEMO Archives
MEMO Advertising

MEMO Country (Map)
MEMO Web Neighbors
MEMO Staff

MEMO BLOG

© 2014 Mid-county MEMO
Terms & Conditions
Business Memos...

Local businesses are the lifeblood of our community. The Mid-county Memo offers this section to our business neighbors for news, advancements, promotions, expansions and other noteworthy events to be shared with the community at large. Business Memo submissions for the February issue are due by Wednesday, Feb.15. For best results, e-mail Darlene Vinson at editor@midcountymemo.com. You may also mail submissions to 3510 N.E. 134th Ave., Portland, OR 97230. To leave a phone message, dial 503-287-8904. The Mid-county Memo fax number is 503-249-7672.

Parkrose Hardware breaks sales record
Parkrose Hardware owner Bryan Ableidinger looks over the plans for the half-million dollar remodel at his store. The remodel was one factor helping the business break all sales records last year.
Mid-county Memo photo/Tim Curran
Parkrose Hardware eclipsed its annual sales record in 2013. A half-million dollar-remodeling project not only enabled owners Bryan and David Ableidinger to bring in more products that customers wanted but also resulted in the best year ever for sales. “The remodel got us re-positioned for the future,” said Bryan Ableidinger. “When you invest in your community and your company, good things happen.”

With about 100 employees-60 in Parkrose and 40 at their Vancouver location-and more than 14 million dollars in annual sales, Ableidinger said they are hiring and bucking the nationwide trend. “National averages have hardware stores seeing a decline of their customer count on an annual basis and we've experienced an increase. Our sales increases are more than double national averages; in some cases, they might be triple.”

The remodel gave them more room to experiment with new products. “Our customers appreciate having a lot of new products available to them; in view if you will,” Ableidinger said. “We had very limited space to display new items. So, we gave ourselves a lot more room for new and promoted products where we had room to stack larger quantities and try new things.”

In addition, Parkrose Hardware received two national awards in 2013.

ACE Hardware, its parent affiliate, gave Parkrose Hardware a “Coolest Hardware Store on the Planet” award. Bestowed in October, the third-annual award was given to just six of the more than 4,700 locally owned and operated ACE Hardware stores worldwide. Here is a link to the You Tube video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyTWJOqDOEY.

Home Channel News, a nationwide media network of print, online and e-newsletters for the hardware and home store industry, named Parkrose Hardware the Oregon All-Star on its list of 50 of the best hardware stores in the country.

Also in its third year, this award names one hardware store outstanding in its field from each state.

The awards noted features that make Parkrose Hardware unique: the renowned fastener department with more than 10,000 distinct items; a well-designed website; the classic Do-It-Yourself guides and helpful videos and cotton candy machine rentals.

With the completion of the Parkrose remodel, the same process has begun at their Vancouver store. “We're following the same décor package. It's a different space and different facility, so we had to modify it, but the look and feel of the store will be the same as Portland,” Ableidinger said. “We've had a lot of success with what we've done and taking care of our customers and providing solutions for whatever they've got need for.”

BeginRight starts over in Argay Terrace
BeginRight Employment Services will open this spring at 3708 N.E. 122nd Ave. The business is re-developing the vacant building that stands at the site, creating a new home for its eastside office which will move from its current location at 10905 N.E. Sandy Blvd. The business also has offices in Tualatin and Vancouver, according to its website.

This fall, the Argay Neighborhood Association arranged a meeting with the nearby Beechway homeowners and Joanne Bell, owner of BeginRight Employment Services; her architects, Whitney and Associates Architects, PC; and the contractor for the project.

The homeowners generally approved of development plans for the site.

After questioning whether a second story would be added to the building, neighbors were pleased to learn no such plans ever had existed. They also learned the interior and exterior of the building would be renovated to look more attractive. In addition, the existing building will be enlarged by moving the front of the building forward a short distance to form a new entry. Landscaping will be added and the greenery now in place between the lot and the adjacent property to the east will remain to ensure privacy for that property.

The steep driveway entrance into the parking lot will be modified and neighbors agreed that signage planned for the business will be permitted.

Beech Street neighbors felt the proposed renovation will be a positive and welcome improvement to their Argay Terrace neighborhood.

For more information about the business, see www.beginright.com.




Memo Calendar | Memo Pad | Business Memos | Meals on Wheels | Letters | About the MEMO
MEMO Advertising | MEMO Archives | MEMO Web Neighbors | MEMO Staff | Home