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Briskets, brackets, hinges and ham share space in unique Oxford hardware store
A true entrepreneur is always looking for a marketing opportunity, and they often put things together in unique ways. For example, one day Oxford’s Carl Kramer realized:
- He had unused space in his own hardware store
- He had popular brats, burgers, brisket and ham available from his own butcher shop, the Oxford Locker
- No one was offering those kinds of lunches in downtown Oxford, and most importantly,
- People coming in to get a lag bolt might want a sandwich or a gourmet coffee,
and - People coming into get an ice cream or a breakfast burrito might need a shelf bracket or a paint brush.
Faced with the facts and as a true entrepreneur, Kramer had no choice but to open Steamers Lunch Counter and Gourmet Coffees inside Kramer’s Hardware.
“Foot traffic in the hardware store has been increasing,” Kramer said, “and I began to think a gourmet coffee shop would serve my current customers and appeal to new ones. Among my inspirations is Movies, Tanning & More and G-K Java, owned by Kim and Greg Anderson in Holdrege. They started by combining tanning beds with movie rentals and then added gourmet coffee drinks, special candies and greeting cards.”
Small towns require creative solutions
Small towns pose a special challenge to entrepreneurs because there just isn’t the population to support enterprises aimed at narrow market niches. One way or another, you have to attract a broad range of customers to be viable.
So Carl Kramer’s going to do it with barbecue.
Kramer’s first venture, Oxford Locker, is a well-established business with a steady clientele and significant local demand for his personal specialties such as sausage, bacon and ham.
Kramer purchased the hardware store in 2003, three months after the former owner closed his hardware store and auctioned the contents of the building.
“There had always been a hardware store in Oxford, and people missed it,” Kramer said. “No one wanted to drive 20 miles to buy a hinge or a sack of nails so I bought the building and restocked it.”
The building on Oxford main street is spacious, and its 65,000 products for sale attract customers from the town and beyond. “When gas prices hit $3.00 a gallon, sales jumped 40%.” Kramer said.
Come early to Wednesday barbeque
To get started, Kramer found an antique solid oak lunch counter formerly used in a café in Oxford. He trimmed the counter with cedar that was cut and harvested locally and opened Steamers January 2.
Steamer’s menu includes homemade polish sausage, sauerkraut, ham, roast beef and baked pork sandwiches, potato salad, macaroni salad and coleslaw as well as gourmet coffees, soft serve ice cream, smoothies, fresh scones and home-baked cinnamon rolls, among other items.
Lunches are served in the café Monday through Saturday, and on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month at noon, Kramer barbecues ribs, chicken and sometimes a beef brisket, but if you’re interested in getting in on the good stuff, don’t be late: he begins serving at 11:00 a.m. and often by 11:30 the lunches are sold out. The rib special has drawn over 40 people, Kramer said, and he suggests patrons call in their orders before 11:00 a.m. just to make sure.
On Tuesday, Steamer’s is open until 8 p.m. for $1.50 burgers. The meat is raised locally, ground fresh and grilled just the way you like them. It’s a tough burger to beat.
A Nebraska supporter
Kramer’s Hardware stocks GROW Nebraska products, all of which are made in the Cornhusker State. Customers may also purchase Mama Salsa, made in nearby Orleans; International Spices of Fremont; and Holmon Barbecue Sauces of Minden among many other specialty items produced in Nebraska.
The hardware store basically pays the overhead for Steamers. According to Kramer, Steamers employees are cross-trained to also work in the hardware store. Steamers employs one full time and four part time people, and the hardware store employees three people part time.
For the future, Kramer envisions picnic tables and umbrellas on the wide, clean sidewalk outside, allowing customers to sit outside to sip coffee or eat their box lunch and enjoy the peace and view of small town life.
Says Kramer: “The hardware store and lunch counter work hand in hand. People who eat at Steamers usually buy a product in the hardware store.”
Who To Contact...
Kramer's Hardware/Steamer's Lunch Counter and Gourmet Coffees
Carl Kramer
310 Ogden
Oxford, NE 68967
(308) 824-9198
Locker@atcjet.net
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