No shortage of surprises
For O ’ Hara Hardware , holiday displays bring sense of unknown to customers
By CHAD DRURY
Half the fun , maybe more , is the surprise element .
And there ’ s no way O ’ Hara Hardware is changing anything .
For almost 50 years during the holiday season , the business has captured the wonders of its customers with its interior , Christmas-themed displays , and its reindeer display outside the building on West Main Street .
Store manager Karen Phillips , who has been with the business for about 30 years , is fully enthralled in the annual tradition .
“ We ’ ve always been known as a Christmas destination , a Christmas tradition ,” she said . “ Growing up ( owner ) Mike ( O ’ Hara ) and his family always had a big Christmas tree with lights on it , and I think it just kind of has inspired throughout the years .”
In 1974 , because of urban renewal , the store moved to its current location and began painting its front windows . Over time , the holiday spirit has evolved to the point where the store builds three different displays every year , working on them simultaneously for about a week , or until they are completed . At times , building the displays is an all-hands-on-deck task .
O ’ Hara uses materials from its store but , because the store is affiliated with TruValue , the parent company also chips in . However , the store also buys materials from gift shows . Many times , Phillips said , the employees make their own props .
“ Originally it took longer because that was before there were trees that were pre-lit ,” she said . “ So we would put a light set on each individual branch of the artificial trees , but that definitely took longer .
“ And then there ’ s items that we are able to use year after year that we keep on hand , so we have a large storage area for all of that ,” Phillips said .
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