By James Lomuscio
Westport’s Crossroads Hardware, for 27 years a hub and a bad weather barometer seen by all the salt, shovels and essentials, is a victim of the times.
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Jimmy Izzo (l) and father A.J. Izzo: hardware store a victim of changing lifestyles. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
Owner Jimmy Izzo, 53, in announcing today the Friday, May 25 closing date, said: “This is business decision; the numbers aren’t there.”
He cited irreversible challenges, including online sales competition and the loss of skilled do-it-yourselfers (DIYs) to a keypad culture.
Izzo says he more or less grew up in the store at 345 Main St. He was 26 when Crossroads first opened its doors.
His father A.J. (Anthony Joseph) Izzo, was also close by to offer counsel and to help out. A.J. Izzo is a retired builder who up until 10 years ago had half-ownership in the mini-mall housing Crossroads. The building is now owned by Dominic Santellla of Stamford.
Together, Izzo and his father forged a new sense of old Westport, a small town, cracker barrel feeling where one could stop in for a simple set of nuts and bolts, if not large items, and loads of conversation just a half-mile north of downtown’s high-end national chain stores.
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Crossroads Ace Hardware, 345 Main St., will close Friday, May 25. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
“But cracker barrel and nuts and bolts don’t pay the rent,” said Izzo, a member of the Representative Town Meeting (RTM), serving District 3.
“Basically what happened is that the whole retail market has changed,” he added.
“Amazon has been a big gamer changer, and everything we sell can be purchased online. And with Amazon Prime, with one fee yearly, you get free shipping.”
A.J. Izzo said the hardware business also suffers because people are not as handy as they used to be due to schools, including Westport’s, having dropped carpentry classes and alike for computer courses.
“It’s a whole mindset,” the son agreed. “Christmas used to be a bonanza for us selling lights,” he said. “Now they buy prewired, disposable trees. Everything’s disposable.”
A.J. Izzo chimed in that parents seem to be too busy on weekends with their children’s sports to even tackle small jobs around the house, tasks that traditionally required a trip to the hardware store.
Owner Jimmy Izzo with longtime customer Candace Herbst today. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com
“Four years ago when we had a similar winter, we went through 24 pallets of ice melt,” Izzo said. “This year we hardly went through two.”
Regarding his future, Izzo says he wants to explore other options.
“I will somehow be involved in a people business,” he said. “I like people.
“You can’t put a (price) tag on relationships,” Izzo added. “I can’t thank the community enough for its support and friendship over the years.”
While he did not say what kind of—or even if there would be—sales going on until the last day, Izzo said, “It’s basically a month of celebration.”
—Dave Matlow contributed reporting
