A Second Store

This past January, I posted this article about a young man named Nick Graham from Truman Minnesota, who purchased a local grocery store after it closed. Big deal, you say? Well, Mr. Graham was only seventeen years old and still in high school when he opened the Main Street Market. For a CBS News report on that event, watch this video:



So, now that Nick Graham is eighteen and a high school graduate, he has purchased a second store in Armstrong, Iowa. Why?

“The first store was going so well, and when this opportunity came, I couldn’t pass it up,” [he] said.

Graham purchased Armstrong Foods from owner Jeff Johnson of Bancroft, IA. Because the store was still operating when the change of ownership took place, the transition to new management went quite smoothly.

“This was an easier transition; it was still going and they have a great group of employees, so it made it a lot easier. It came together a lot quicker.”

So, Mr. Graham now splits his time between Truman and Armstrong, a drive that covers only about 35 miles. Not a bad commute, even for the rural Midwest. The next time I am home, I plan to visit the “Graham Groceries” and see for myself how this young man is holding up against the competition provided by the larger supermarkets in my hometown, a community that lies between the two local markets that Nick Graham operates. Hopefully, I will find them thriving.

Quotes taken from an article in the Fairmont Sentinel.