Family owned Emigh Hardware to open 23k square foot El Dorado Hills store

After sitting vacant for several years, a 23,000-square-foot retail space that was formerly a CVS Pharmacy in El Dorado Hills will soon have new tenants and their name is well-known in the region. Emigh Ace Hardware plans to open a second location with a unique dual-store concept. According to Emigh President Brian Lawrence, a store-within-a-store concept is planned at 4560 Post St., a former CVS Pharmacy site in Market Place at Town Center that has been vacant for several years after CVS relocated across the street. Emigh Ace Hardware will reportedly occupy approximately 12,000 square feet of the space, while Emigh's Outdoor Living will fill another 6,500 square feet, said Lawrence, president of both businesses. "We've been eyeing that space for a couple of years, actually," Lawrence said. According to Lawrence, they hope to open in early to mid spring, just in time for those many home projects. It is projected that the new location will cost upwards of $1 million to prepare for occupancy. Emigh Hardware has been a family-owned-and-operated business in Sacramento County for more than a century. Brothers James and Clay Emigh opened their first hardware store in downtown Sacramento in 1908. Four years later after opening, the company merged with Winchell and Cline and moved to a larger location at 310 J St. Another move in 1918 took the business to Seventh and J Street, where it remained for 14 years under the leadership of the brothers, according to historical information featured on the company's website. With the retirement of the senior Emigh brothers in the early 1930s, the next generation took the helm. James' sons, Albert, James Jr. and Colby, moved the business to 13th and J Street, the current location of the Sacramento Community Convention Center. By 1952, Colby was ready for another move. Attracted by the postwar building boom in the suburbs, he took a risk and relocated the business to "the country," the newly-developed Country Club Center at El Camino and Watt whose only neighbor was a goat farm. In the earlier years, many reportedly had trouble pronouncing the name of the store, so in the 1960s they introduced a cartoon character depicting a pigtailed girl in overalls saying, "Call me Amy." Little Amy was all about family too. She was a composite of Colby and Jesma Emigh's daughters, Carol and Mary. The character is still a familiar feature in the company's advertisements today. Colby Emigh's son-in-law, Rich Lawrence, is now the company CEO and Brian Lawrence is the great-grandson to James Emigh and is the latest generation operating the business. Emigh Hardware touts that their customers are treated to extras that "they just can't get elsewhere." They employ knowledgeable employees, some of whom have been with the company for more than 20 years. They strive to ensure "more customer assistance per square foot than any other hardware store." "Our customers take ownership of the store," Rich Lawrence said. "They feel it's their store." A few of the services they have been known for through the years that are of no cost to the customer is the cleaning of faucet parts for plumbing projects. Power tools are also set up for customers, serviced and ready to go. Cashiers who are working with in-store customers strive to do so without interruptions of incoming calls as they are supported by office staff who handle incoming calls and assist customers. The announcement of Emigh's comes along with several new businesses opening in El Dorado Hills. Formaggio's Pizza Express just recently opened in Town Center where Sourdough and Co. was previously located. World Traveler Coffee recently occupied the former Zia's vacant space, Snug Spot Comics opened prior to the holidays and it was announced a new eatery operated by locals Mark and Karoline Platt will soon fill the vacant Bistro 33 space. "We are beyond ecstatic. A hardware store is long overdue for our community," said Debbie Manning, CEO of the El Dorado Hills Chamber of Commerce. "It's a homerun for El Dorado Hills, having a family with the reputation of Emigh's Hardware and the Ace Hardware Brand success will follow."