By SEAN BOSTON
Hutch Post
SOUTH HUTCHINSON, Kan. — A new home improvement and surplus store is preparing to open its doors in South Hutchinson this fall.
Chupp’s Trading Post is targeting a mid-October opening at 40 N. Kansas Ave. Owner Kirby Chupp said the store will serve as a one-stop shop for home improvement needs while also offering discounted and surplus merchandise.
The approximately 14,000-square-foot store will feature a full-service lumberyard along with hardware, tools, paint, flooring, doors, windows, shingles, cabinets, bathroom fixtures and appliances. Customers will also find a mix of premium, discounted and scratch-and-dent products.
“We give people the options,” Chupp said. “If they want the affordable option or if they want the premium option.”
Chupp’s Trading Post is a sister company to Okie-Mart, which operates locations in Muskogee, Oklahoma, and Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Chupp said the South Hutchinson location will follow a similar model but place a greater emphasis on lumber and traditional hardware-store products.
The store will also regularly bring in surplus merchandise that could range well beyond home improvement products.
“Every time you come through the doors, you can expect to find something new,” Chupp said.
Chupp said South Hutchinson was a natural location because his wife is from the area and he has spent considerable time in the community over the past several years.
“I like the area,” Chupp said. “I’ve always said that a store like that would do good there. I think the community would like it.”
Chupp is partnering with his cousin, Jason Chupp, who owns the two Okie-Mart locations, and John Wilhite on the South Hutchinson venture. Work is underway to prepare the property, including plans for additional outdoor retail space and a greenhouse.
Chupp said the business expects to employ approximately 12 to 14 people. The planned hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. The store will be closed Sundays.While an exact opening date has not been finalized, Chupp said the goal is to welcome customers during the second or third week of October.
He said the early response from the South Hutchinson community has been encouraging.
“That has been super encouraging for us,” Chupp said. “It’s really kind of a risk, a little bit of a gamble to have any type of big investment like that in a town that you’re not from. So that’s really encouraging to hear people be excited about it.”