NEERLANDIA – The Neerlandia Co-op is celebrating their 10-year anniversary of the hardware store opening in the new building.
“Neerlandia Co-op started 103 years ago,” said store manager Steven DeVries.
“People had a vision back then and I don't know that they could ever have envisioned that it would grow into something like it is today.”
The hardware store had been located on the south side of the road with a warehouse attached, like the set up that exists today.
That structure burnt to the ground on June 22, 2013.
Neerlandia Co-op had already purchased the land on the north side of the road to build a new grocery store location. The old food store was getting old, and it was going to be too expensive to be repaired so it needed to be replaced.
The board made the decision that building the hardware store on the new property was the priority after the fire.
The hardware business moved temporarily into a smaller building in the hamlet and kept the hardware sales continuing throughout the construction of the new location.
On March 13, 2015, Neerlandia Co-op had a grand opening of the new home and farm centre.
The food store was already built at that time but the grand opening for that happened in 2016.
In the last 10 years there has been the addition of the liquor store and the restaurant as well as a significant expansion of the sportsman centre in the hardware store.
The sportsman's centre for firearms and ammunition was going to be an office but it was decided to leave the AG office on the other side of the road closer to the fertilizer and crop protection warehouses.
There has been a lot of growth sales and that has expanded the staff which creates jobs for local people, now with 75 part-time and full-time staff according to DeVries.
Neerlandia Co-op had to increase the workspace behind the service desk. They originally thought they had enough offices, but it didn't take long before they were expanding and hiring more people.
When the Neerlandia Co-op was established in 1922 it was initially the hub for the surrounding Dutch community.
Today people travel near and far to take advantage of the exemplary services. The restaurant is a social gathering community place with delicious home cooked meals.
The product lines within the hardware store have expanded to meet the needs of the community. The agriculture services expanded, and the variety of customers shows their success in delivering quality products.
The replica store was built for the 100th anniversary and they have found ways to continue to use it as a space that people can rent. It opens as a pop-up shop once a month for a group of specialized vendors who change each month.
“I think it's a way that we're able to honour our past but at the same time create community within the new greater community that we serve,” said DeVries.
The windmill re-construction on the west parking lot is also a part of honouring the Co-op's past.
