New store 'bringing back' retail items Greenfield has lost

He's the son of a small business owner, so you could say David Wallace of Greenfield has been around small business ownership for his entire lifetime.

That's one reason Wallace was able to see the need to open the Greenfield Home Store and More on Nov. 18. It's located at 202 SW Kent St., inside the former home of Shopko Hometown.

New store

Wallace also manages Greenfield True Value on Highway 25. He saw an opportunity where he could expand retail offerings in Greenfield and that is how the new store came about.

"We were trying to bring back the things that are missing from Greenfield. Western Auto used to sell [sofas] and beds and Big Bear did the same thing later on. That's why we decided to get that. After the Rays retired people were looking for gifts, so that's why we started gifts. When the pharmacy went out uptown, people needed a place for Hallmark," Wallace said. "These are all things that used to be here that went away from separate businesses. That's why we're doing this."

Greenfield Home Store and More carries furniture, mattresses, appliances, work wear, paint, an extensive Hallmark card and gifts selection, and more. NuCara Pharmacy announced on its Facebook page recently it will be moving Dec. 9 back to the Home Store and More building from its current location inside the hospital.

Wallace reports that many of the products that are at True Value that are geared more toward females will predominantly be moved to the new store. Everything else will remain at the True Value location.

"Later on, we'll be getting outdoor furniture, which will come in this spring," Wallace said last Wednesday. "It's coming along, it's getting there."

Co-Managers

While Wallace owns the new store, he's leaving management of the building to Jackie Waltz and his daughter, Gina (Wallace) Shelley.

Shelley says that taking the building from its bare state to a full store has been a "learning process." Many hands made light work when it mattered most and the store was quickly nearing its opening date.

"It's been a learning process for sure. It was a lot of work. It's going to be rewarding in the end to bring it back to the community, giving them somewhere to shop if they don't want to go to the city," Shelley said. "We're excited for the community to come in and see what we've got. We want to show them we're thinking about them and are trying to bring things here so that they can shop instead of going elsewhere."

"A lot of people want to shop local — that's a big thing now," Waltz said. "The pharmacy will be here Dec. 9 and that will be a big plus too."