Harley and Pam Petersen are toasting “Cheers to 20 Years” at Century Home Hardware on Birch Ave. at Fifth Street in 100 Mile House on April 22, and are inviting the community to share in their celebration.
They wish all their customers, in particular, to join them for their special day with guest speakers Cariboo Chilcotin incumbent MLA Donna Barnett, District of 100 Mile House Mayor Mitch Campsall and area Home Hardware representative Terry Smith at 11 a.m.
Enjoy a slice of their Cheers to 20 Years cake for free, but save an appetite for lunch, as the Lone Butte 4-H Club will be offering a hotdog, bag of chips and a refreshment for $5 as a fundraiser for their local group.
A grand prize draw will award a patio set with table, chairs and umbrella worth $550, and smaller prizes will be awarded randomly to those who make purchases, during a huge one-day sale running all day from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The Petersen’s purchased the business from Walter and Virginia Zielke on April 15, 1997 when their children were young, and then the years have flown by as they raised their family while running their first ever retail store, Pam explains.
While she and Harley are grateful for the Zielke’s help at first in “learning the ropes,” Pam says even after two decades, they still digest some new piece of information every day.
“We’ve grown a lot in our inventory to meet the needs of our community. There are always new products coming, and we are learning and changing every day.”
There is always changing technology for computer inventory counts, as well as for handling online and custom orders for any Home Hardware items not on the shelves, she says, adding any item in stock at the warehouse they can have at their store within a week.
While she and Harley are well-known for their hard work and service to their community, Pam notes the whole family was involved in some way or another.
She says their children picked up great customer service skills as well as good work ethics along the way, and grew up to be hard workers themselves.
“They are excited for us too, to realize we are now celebrating 20 years.”
The Petersens also credit a huge amount of their success to their staff, especially in maintaining terrific customer service skills and the great attitude that has developed into a warm atmosphere, she adds.
“Our staff is always our family too.”
However, she says during the first years after they took over, the most amazing thing to her was that so many folks asked where they were from, and were so relieved to hear they live locally. Harley was born and raised in 100 Mile House, where Pam has lived since she was seven.
Harley adds his view of the future from here is as innovative and evolving as ever, with ongoing changes in Home Hardware’s products and technology always coming down the pike.
