Fall 2018 Hardlines Strategies

CUSTOMER PROFILE

Wide Open Spaces Missouri Lumberyard Expands to New Horizons

The family, led by owner Maurice Pitts, runs multiple businesses. Along with a real estate agency, a mobile home/RV dealership and a farm raising Angus cattle is the business that now shares a roof with those operations: Hermitage Lumber. Pitts and his family have been in the Hermitage, Missouri, area since the 1970s, becoming pillars of the community with their business ventures serving nearby lake and vacation communities in the area. In 1995, Hermitage Lumber, which was then called Sallee Lumber and sat in the middle of town along the main east-west road, was looking to close its doors after the primary owner had passed away and the family didn’t intend to continue running it. Having seen the importance of having a lumberyard and hardware store close by and serving the town, Pitts decided to purchase the business and add to his collection of operations. The company proceeded from there in its original location until it became clear that its small size was holding it back. Specifically, the small parking lot meant customers would often keep driving if there were too many cars in the lot, Pitts says. A small salesfloor and the lack of storage space also hindered business and forced backstock to be stored in other locations and facilities tied to Pitts’ family businesses. many balls in the air as the Pitts family is, it helps to have a lot of space to work in. W hen you’re juggling as

Hermitage Lumber recently moved into a new location just outside Hermitage, Missouri. The new store location shares a building with other businesses owned by the Pitts family.

14 Fall 2018 • Hardlines Strategies