Our story
63 years of Holloway
William + Margaret Holloway opened the South Minneapolis store in 1962. Their grandson Tom Jr. runs it today. Through 4 generations + 3 stores, the same philosophy: knowledgeable staff, specialty inventory, real service. Why the family business still exists.
1962
Founded by William + Margaret Holloway
4
Generations of Holloways
47
Employees across 3 stores
120k+
Active customers
Generations
The Holloway family
1962-1989 — William + Margaret Holloway (Founders)
Opened the original South Minneapolis store at 4218 Lyndale Avenue South. William managed inventory + customer relationships; Margaret kept the books + ran the paint counter. Built reputation across South Minneapolis through the 1970s + 1980s.
1989-2014 — Tom + Linda Holloway Sr. (2nd generation)
Tom Sr. (William’s son) joined the business in 1979. Took over from his parents in 1989. Opened the St. Paul store in 1989. Grew the business through the 1990s + 2000s. Linda Holloway joined in 1992 + ran HR + community partnerships.
2007 — Edina store opens (3rd location)
Tom + Linda + their adult children opened the Edina store at 5042 France Avenue. New territory; new customer base. Edina store became third pillar of business. 18 years later still going strong.
2014-present — Tom Jr. + Sarah Holloway (3rd generation)
Tom Jr. (Tom Sr.’s son) joined in 2002 after college; took over leadership in 2014. Sarah Holloway (Tom Jr.’s sister) joined in 2010, runs operations across all 3 stores. The 3rd generation runs day-to-day.
2025+ — Mike Jr. (4th generation, in-training)
Tom Jr.’s son Mike Jr. (16) is starting at the Lyndale store after school + on weekends. Anna Holloway (14) is interested in operations + bookkeeping. The 4th generation is forming. Continuity matters.
Today's leadership
Who runs the place
Tom Holloway Jr. — President + CEO
Joined business 2002. Took over from parents in 2014. Runs strategic direction, contractor + community relationships, supplier negotiations. Tom Jr. is at one of the 3 stores most days.
Sarah Holloway — VP Operations
Joined 2010. Runs day-to-day operations across all 3 stores. Hiring + employee development + customer experience. Sarah Holloway is the person you’ll most often see walking the floor.
Carlos Ramirez — South Minneapolis store manager (16 years)
Started as paint counter staff. Became assistant manager in 2010. Store manager since 2018. Lives in the neighborhood, knows half the customers by name.
Janelle Park — St. Paul store manager (12 years)
Started as plumbing department lead. Promoted to store manager in 2019. Specialty: vintage + restoration plumbing. Half her customers are restoration projects.
David Chen — Edina store manager (8 years)
Joined Edina store at opening in 2007 (originally as gardening + landscaping specialist). Store manager since 2017. Edina’s premium hardware + paint expertise.
Lin Park — Buyer + supplier relationships (11 years)
Manages all inventory + supplier relationships. Particular focus on specialty + vintage. The reason we have hard-to-find parts in stock.
Why we still exist
The economic reality of independent hardware
Big-box dominates commodity items
Home Depot + Lowe’s + (in some markets) Menard’s dominate the commodity hardware market. We don’t compete on price for 2x4s, drywall, basic plumbing fittings. We’d lose. We don’t try.
We compete on expertise + inventory specialty
Where we win: customers needing project advice, specialty parts, hard-to-find items, restoration work, complex projects. Customers willing to pay 5-15% more for service experience + saved time.
Long-tenured staff = real expertise
Average 14 years employee tenure. Staff genuinely know hardware + plumbing + electrical + paint + garden. They’ve done your project. They’ve seen your problem before. They have answers.
Curated inventory (not catalog dump)
We carry ~14,000 SKUs vs. Home Depot’s ~50,000+. We don’t carry everything; we carry what works. Quality + reliability filters applied. Saves customers from buying the wrong thing.
Community + relationships compound over time
63 years of relationships. Multi-generation customers. Some families have been Holloway customers for 4 generations (matching ours). Trust earned over decades.
Independent hardware is a viable economic model
Twin Cities Independent Hardware Association: 4 stores still operating since the 1960s. Family-owned hardware survives where service expertise + community matter. Our 3 stores prove the model still works in 2026.
What we won't do
Decisions we've made
We won't sell to a chain
We’ve been approached by chain hardware acquirers (Ace, True Value) several times. We’re not selling. The Holloway family will operate these stores into the next generation. No outside investors.
We won't open online-only
Online hardware retail is dominated by Amazon + Home Depot.com. We can’t compete + don’t want to. Local + in-store is our model. Limited online ordering for specific specialty items only.
We won't expand beyond Twin Cities
We’re Minneapolis + St. Paul + Edina. We’ve been approached about Bloomington + Plymouth + Wayzata locations. Decline. We’re a Twin Cities institution; we don’t want to dilute that by spreading too thin.
We won't sacrifice expertise for scale
Our 47 employees are the product. We don’t hire to fill bodies; we hire for expertise + retention. Some retail chains have 100x our store count + half our employee tenure. Wrong tradeoff for us.
We won't stop the workshops
20+ free workshops a year. Don’t generate direct revenue. Some pure community contribution. We continue because building DIY skill in our community is part of what we do.
We won't lose the family character
Family-owned. Family-run. Family-felt. As we transition to 4th generation, we’ll preserve that. Even when challenging or inefficient. Some things matter more than efficiency.
Press + recognition
Where we've been featured
Star Tribune — ‘The hardware store that won’t die’ (2024)
Long-form feature on independent hardware survival in the Twin Cities. Featured Holloway as a case study. National syndication via Tribune wire service.
Twin Cities Magazine — Top 50 Independent Businesses (2023, 2024)
Named in Twin Cities Magazine’s annual list two years running. Honors family-owned businesses operating 25+ years with strong community presence.
MPR All Things Considered (2023)
20-minute feature on Holloway as example of family business survival. Tom Jr. + Sarah interviewed. National public radio audience.
Star Tribune Top Workplaces (2022, 2023, 2024)
Three years running as a Top Workplace based on employee surveys. Recognition for retention, culture, and employee development.
Minnesota Family Business Award (2018)
Statewide recognition for multi-generation family business excellence. Awarded by University of MN Family Business Center. Tom Sr. + Tom Jr. accepted jointly.
Twin Cities Independent Hardware Association — founding member
We co-founded the Twin Cities Independent Hardware Association in 1987. Trade group + advocacy for surviving independent stores. Tom Sr. served as founding president.
Story questions
What customers ask
- Yes. Holloway family owns 100% of the business. Tom Holloway Jr. is the 3rd generation; he and his sister Sarah run it day-to-day. Tom Sr. + Linda are still active in advisory roles. The 4th generation (Mike Jr., Anna) is starting to learn the business. No outside investors, no chain affiliations.