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Cook Street Castle purchases competing local retail hardware store and lumberyard in Victoria, BC
As you drive through the Greater Victoria area of British Columbia, you will notice the prominence of Castle Building Centres and now there is yet another new Castle in town; Bay Street Castle Building Centre. This new location on Bay Street in Victoria was recently acquired and re-branded by the Hagels this past week transitioning to Castle from a competing banner.
The new owners; Frank and Vicki Hagel also own and operate the nearby Cook Street Castle Building Centre. When they saw the incredible opportunity to own this very strategically located retail store, they jumped at the prospect of opening their second Castle location. The new store is positioned to serve the needs of Victoria and Esquimalt communities as well as the downtown small business area and the flourishing condo/townhouse market of Greater Victoria.
“It gives me great pride to see the entrepreneurial spirit alive in our members as they continue to grow and prosper. This purchase by the Hagel family will not only strengthen the prominence of the Castle Building Centre brand in the Greater Victoria area but is a fine example of how Castle members have the ability to be successful and flourish as part of the group.” Ken Jenkins, President
Owners; Frank and Vicki Hagel have been in the lumber and building materials since the early 80’s and opened their first Castle location, Cook Street Castle in 1986. A busy retail hardware and renovation store on Cook Street featuring the only “drive-thru” lumberyard in BC. Frank will continue to run the Cook Street location as Vicki and long time General Manager Brent Cowling will spearhead the transition and operate the new Bay Street store which began with the complete re-branding to Castle.
Bay Street Castle Building Centre sits on 2.6 acres of land on Bay Street with a 23,000 sq. ft. retail storefront and 9,000 sq. ft. warehouse space. The Bay Street Castle location will carry a complete range of lumber, hardware and building materials and be serviced by the over 20 experienced staff members who were retained as part of the acquisition.
Vicki and Frank are excited about this opportunity and the potential it brings;
“We were thrilled when Brian Higgins of Baywest Rona approached us about buying his store, opportunities like this don’t come along every day. Frank and I are fortunate to have had great support from our community and valuable staff over the years. We think we have a good business model and the store’s vibe offers a positive shopping experience. We are looking forward to duplicating that in the Bay Street location.
Although we have been Castle members for over 20 years, the Cook Street store adopted the Castle name in 2009. That has proven to be a pivotal decision, as we believe this to be the brand of the future for the independent building supply store in Canada!”
Vicki Hagel; Owner
Cook Street Castle has been a strong contributor to the local economy for over 25 years and this acquisition will further support the community.
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