'People are pretty upset': Peavey Mart store closures in Ontario, N.S. seen as a loss for farm owners

Tanya Leckie didn’t come empty-handed when she arrived at the Peavey Mart location in London, Ontario, on Wednesday.

As a gift to staff at the soon-to-close store on Hyde Park Road, she brought six cupcakes, their multicolored sprinkles visible through the clear plastic packaging. It’s a gift he’s given the staff many times before.

“They deserve a treat every once in a while,” he told CBC News on Wednesday. “They are a very community-based operation.”

Leckie loves Peavey Mart because he lives on a rural property and sells the items he needs: farm equipment and horse feed. The company also helps an animal rescue it is involved with called Heavenly Hills Animal Sanctuary based north of London in Lucan. The store hosts in-store meet-ups where people can adopt the animals or purchase items to donate to the animal shelter, such as cat litter.

“They will organize one more for us in February,” Leckie said. “And it will be like goodbye.”

In April, the Hyde Park location will close, along with 22 other Peavey Marts in Ontario and one in Nova Scotia, after the company announced a restructuring.

Closures in southwestern Ontario include locations in Sarnia, St. Thomas, Goderich and Woodstock. The Peavey Mart in east London will remain open; the location in Lambeth is also closing.

In a statement posted online, the company said the closures are necessary “to address current challenges, strengthen its operations and position itself for future sustainability.”

In Hyde Park on Wednesday, signs posted throughout the store announced its imminent closure and discounts on merchandise of 10 to 30 percent.

Some of the customers who spoke to CBC News admitted they stopped by to check out potential deals. Others, however, spoke of feeling lost due to the store’s sole focus on supplies for agricultural and rural properties.

“I really loved this job”

Michelle Beatson is the store’s inventory supervisor. She also owns horses and often shops there. He said customers have expressed sadness upon learning the store will close. Many live in rural areas in communities beyond London’s city limits.

Michelle Beatson, inventory supervisor at the Hyde Park store, says its closure will be a loss for customers living in rural properties. “A lot of people are quite upset about this,” he says. (Andrew Lupton/CBC News)

“A lot of people are pretty upset about this,” he said. “We are the closest farm store to many of the outside communities.”

He said the store sells work clothing, such as waterproof boots and coveralls designed specifically for farming and gardening.

Beatson said he plans to return to another job once the store closes, but he will miss Peavey Mart’s unique culture.

“I really loved this job,” he said. “I’m a horse lover and a lot of people were excited when they came in and saw that I knew horses and other farm animals, but now I won’t be here anymore.”

Terry Fisher is a construction worker who has been a regular Peavey Mart shopper for years. He arrived Wednesday wearing a reflective orange jumpsuit. On your shopping list: a new pair of gloves to warm your hands against the outside temperatures that hit -20 C this week.

“It will be missed in north London,” he said of the Hyde Park Road store. “Sorry to see they are closing. Let’s hope the other two stores in London stay as they are.”

The Peavey Mart on Hyde Park Road in London, Ontario, will close in April, with all sales final and in-store items discounted up to 30 per cent. — Items at the Peavey Mart store on Hyde Park Road in London are discounted up to 30 percent. (Andrew Lupton/CBC News)

The news that Peavey Mart will close a handful of locations in southwestern Ontario disappoints Crispin Colvin, area director for the Ontario Federation of Agriculture. He also has a small beef and cash crop farm near Thorndale.

“It was a place you could go and quickly get some things you needed,” he said.

Colvin said Peavey Mart is known among farmers as a reliable source of farm equipment parts, feed and fencing materials.

“They are really convenient stores. It’s unfortunate because now people will have to drive further to get things, which increases the cost.”

Colvin said that while online retail has changed the farm supply market, he and many other farmers like to see the merchandise in person before purchasing it.

Peavey serves a clientele looking for items related to the rural lifestyle, from fencing to feed. — Peavey sells everything from work clothes to farm implements and animal feed, and caters to a rural clientele, selling many items not found in other big box stores. (Andrew Lupton/CBC News)

“Whether it’s a bag of feed or whatever, I’d rather go in and take a look to see what the options are,” he said. “Online gives you an idea, but there’s a lot to be said for going to the store and seeing the product.”