Lindell’s closes feed store, but adds more pet supplies

NORTH CANAAN — The feed room at C.A. Lindell & Sons is scheduled to close June 4. The hardware, lumber and home improvement business will no longer offer feed for livestock.

The irony here is that closing the feed room is likely to increase sales of small-pet products, with 52 feet of shelf space in the True Value hardware store now devoted to a comprehensive assortment of pet needs.

It was an out-of -sight, out-of-mind situation, with few people knowing they could buy things such as dog leashes and cat litter there, in addition to a full line of Purina chows. The bird feeder section of the store will be expanded to accommodate all of the products that have already been available for wildlife.

The closing was prompted by John Lannen leaving Lindell’s for Agway in Millerton, where he will be the new store manager. 

It was not an easy decision on either end.

At Lindell’s (owned by the Riva family), Bob Riva said the feed room was something they sort of fell into when Sand Road Animal Hospital’s feed store decided to stop selling Purina products.

“You had to start buying them by the truckload, and they didn’t want to have to start dealing with forklifts and such,” Riva said. “They came to us a couple of years or so before we built the new hardware store and suggested we take it on so people could still get their feed locally.”

By the time the new store was built in 2002 on the front portion of the Church Street/Route 44 property, Lannen was hard at work figuring out the feed business. It became an impressive retail addition that even included animal-themed toys.

Unfortunately, it was in a remote spot between the racks of lumber and the drive-through warehouse. For safety reasons, traffic was directed one way or the other through the warehouse to get to the feed store. Riva said they often found people driving around lost back there.

“It was not an easy decision to make,” Riva said. “We had to approach it as a business decision. It wouldn’t be easy to find someone to take over. John had to manage it carefully to get customers what they needed and make sure the product didn’t go bad, which it can do pretty quickly. Although those customers are important to us, the product has a low profit margin. We are directing all of our large-animal customers to Agway, where John can continue to accommodate their needs.”

As for a new use for that difficult-to-find space, Riva said it is a nice, air-conditioned building with an office. They are contemplating various potential uses, maybe even a new product line.