Harbor Freight brings tool time to Two Rivers

January 27, 2005

The Leaf-Chronicle- Clarksdale, TN
By Jimmy Settle

This place is tailor-made for “Tim the Tool Man.”

Harbor Freight Tools officially opened for business in Two Rivers Center on Tuesday, filling 11,000 square feet of the Riverside Drive retail center with everything from wrenches and screwdrivers to drill presses and bandsaws.

And the people came in droves to get their first glimpse. Derrick Traughber of Clarksville, definitely a “man’s man,” found everything he needed within arm’s reach.

He’s shopped at Harbor Freight stores elsewhere, and is glad Clarksville finally has one.

“I work in industrial maintenance and I’ve dealt with the Harbor Freight store in Nashville a lot. In fact I spent over $100 at the Nashville store last week. So this saves me a long drive. I’m glad they’ve got something like this in Clarksville and I’m glad to see it here, at Two Rivers,” Traughber said.

Traughber likes the fact that Harbor Freight is exclusively a tool and home improvement store. “And I like the way this store is laid out. It’s almost better than the Nashville store. For a man that just tinkers around the house, this store is perfect.

“After a while as more and more people find out about it, believe me, this store will have to expand,” he said.

Store manager Ray Bryant wasn’t quite ready to talk expansion on Tuesday. He was just happy to see the doors wide-open to the public, and the masses coming in on a blazing-hot grand opening day.

“The company decided to add a Clarksville location because our corporate owner has some family here, and this area of Tennessee has been a big area for Harbor Freight catalog sales so we knew the customer base was here,” Bryant said.

The Harbor Freight Tools chain is based in Camarillo, Calif., and there are now 214 stores across the U.S. The first store ever to open was in Lexington, Ky.

The Clarksville store currently employs about 12 people.

“Our merchandise includes any kind of tool, from a screwdriver to a metal lathe,” Bryant said.

“If you want it, we’ve got it. We’re really designed more for the everyday home tool user.”

Harbor Freight is the newest victory for Two Rivers Center, which is currently undergoing extensive remodeling both inside and out. The exterior design scheme developed by Lyle-Cook-Martin Architects is intended to make Two Rivers visually consistent with the nearby Cumberland RiverWalk architecture.

“I think it’s great that Two Rivers is coming back,” Bryant said, “and I hope we can get some more businesses in here.”

Jimmy Settle is business editor and can be reached at 245-0742, or at jimmysettle@theleafchronicle.com.