Community Fixture

Trisha Benton

Randolph Times

RANDOLPH — Longtime business owners handed over the keys and opened the door to retirement.

After the day-to-day grind of running Sam’s Hardware Hank for the last 50-plus years, Sam and Nancy Reineke sold the business to Don and Angie Nordhues of Randolph.

Sam said they have no regrets so far.

“I feel 110 percent,” he said. “I was ready for retirement. I’m enjoying it. A couple of weeks or so and I might change my mind but right now, it feels great. I have plenty to do.”

The Reinekes purchased Gambles in Randolph on Dec. 1, 1970 and the store and the family have been pillars in the community ever since.

In 1986, the store changed names and affiliation to Hardware Hank.

Angie Nordhues acknowledges she has some big shoes to fill as the Reinekes’ reputation for customer service and a heart for the community comes along with the purchase of the store.

Reineke had put the For Sale sign up at the business on and off over the last three years and is pleased Nordhues has stepped in to own and operate it. The change in ownership became official May 1.

“She has a lot of get up and go. She lives in town here and that was excellent. She wants to keep it as a store which was a big plus,” Nancy Reineke said.

Nordhues is not really sure what exactly sparked her interest.

Natives of the Randolph area, Angie and Don moved back to the area in 2020 to finish restoring a home on Broadway Street.

With the restoration complete, she was left wondering, what’s next? And she was definitely up for a challenge.

“I started talking to Sam in January. I don’t think he took me seriously,” she said. “The more I thought about it, I thought, I can do a lot with this store.”

But her main motivation? Nordhues did not want the long-time business to close.

“I have heard a lot of comments from customers that they are so glad it’s staying open,” she said.

She’s always had a knack for business - working both as a realtor and formerly owning a small candle business. Her background also includes website design.

Before purchasing the store, Nordhues researched and talked to hardware store owners in nearby communities - Verdigre, Bloomfield, Hartington, Pierce - and other small business owners.

“It was cool to feel such good energy. I’m like, The economy has been kind of crappy, what’s business been like? And they’re expanding and they’re excited,” she said. “The owners around are very positive.”

Those who stop into the store now will already notice changes taking place. For starters, the cash register has been moved from the middle of the store to the front. She also is running the store solo.

For now, the hours and name will remain the same. She’s planning a grand re-opening for later this summer and may possibly re-brand in a year or so.

She encourages people to come in and just browse.

“Right now I’m just trying to get control of what’s in this store,” she said, adding that it will take some time with more than 7,000 items on hand. “I want to make it easier to find stuff and more organized. My brain is going to organize it different. We’ll freshen up stuff.”

The Reinekes have no plans to leave town and don’t have any grand plans in their retirement. Nancy will continue her salon services by appointment out of their home. Sam is looking forward to gardening and mowing his lawn on his own schedule.

Both of them will continue to assist and answer questions from Nordhues when asked.

“I keep telling her Rome wasn’t built in a day. You’re not going to be able to change everything at one time,” Sam said.

Keeping that in mind will be important because Nordhues said she has much to learn.

“Nothing has really gone exactly right. But you know, you roll with the punches,” she said. “I’m really taking it four feet of shelving at a time.”