A hardware store has sat at the corner of Broadway and First streets in Chico since 1871, only a decade or so after the city was founded.
For a few years during the 1910s, the location did operate as a post office, but tools, home products and building materials have filled its shelves for more than a century.
The site was dubbed “Collier Hardware” in 1944, and the business has been a staple in Chico ever since. The building is known for its creaky floorboards, display of antique equipment and reliable stock of hardware and kitchen supplies.
But Collier’s will soon be closing its doors. On February 23, the hardware store’s owners announced it’s going out of business at the end of March.
Many of the aisles are now either empty or have a few items scattered across the shelves. Since the closure was announced over the business’s Facebook page, customers have been flocking to the store.
Becky Rodrigues, a store manager, said that about 560 people visited Collier’s after news of the closure broke. She said it was unprecedented.
“We hadn't realized the word would spread so quickly. And in that first week, we noticed a huge difference in inventory,” Rodrigues said.
Why the store is closing
The store is closing for simple reasons — business has been slow for a while. Rodrigues said costs for running the store have gone up, and sales have generally been low.
“I'm most worried about just what ends up happening with this building after the fact, because there's so much history that's visible. It'll be a tragedy for someone to renovate it too much, then that is gone.”- Becky Rodrigues, Collier Hardware store manager
The building that houses Collier’s has also been for sale since last fall. A sign on a window advertising the building for sale is posted right in front of a large yellow “store closing sale” banner inside the store.
The future of the building is uncertain. Rodrigues said the owners are considering renting out the space, but nothing has happened on that front yet.
“I'm most worried about just what ends up happening with this building after the fact, because there's so much history that's visible,” Rodrigues said. “It'll be a tragedy for someone to renovate it too much, then that is gone.”
Rodrigues first started working for Collier Hardware back in 2008. She said at the moment she’s been too busy to process much about the closure.
“It's hard to really deal with the emotional part of it. But it's sad, and it's gonna be,” she said.
Discounts and silent auction
In the last few weeks the store is open, items are discounted by 20% to 70%. That’s excluding Collier’s merchandise like hats, shirts or sweatshirts, which are still full price. Another shipment of stickers, tote bags and mugs are expected to arrive within a week.
“People can sort of have whatever little piece of Collier's that they can leave with and remember us by,” Rodrigues said.
Collier’s is also holding a silent auction until March 23rd. They’re selling antique tools that were previously used as decor. That includes things like scales, a wire counter, a belt lacer machine and an adding machine. They also have old Collier’s signs, including one from when Canal Street was still open.
“A lot of it's been here for so long that no one really remembers the origins of it,” said Rodrigues. “But a lot of the antique pieces like the scales … who knows how long they've been in the building, because this building's been here for 150 years.”
Rodrigues said the store has a binder with bid sheets that people can fill out. They can look at the items available and place a bid in the store’s office. The highest bidder will get the item.
The highest bid will be marked on a piece of paper taped to each item until a week before the store closes. The bids are updated each morning.
“Coming in and seeing things in person is always the best way to really see and touch and decide if there's something you can't live without,” Rodrigues said.
Collier Hardware is slated to close at 4 p.m. on March 30.
