The Green Store' will hold sale, close
Big chains take away business from family
BY SCOTT WUERZ
News-Democrat

O'FALLON - Auto and Home Discount store is closing after 45 years in business at 1701 W. Highway 50.

If that name doesn't ring a bell, then you're one of the thousands of do-it-yourselfers or bargain hunters who know the shop by its nickname: "The Green Store."

"For the last three years, it has been a struggle," said Pam Beykirch, who owns the business with her husband, Henry, about the decision to close. "We just couldn't keep going the way things have been."

When the shop was founded in 1960 as M&M Distributing, U.S. Route 50 was a sleepy stretch of road. But in recent years, Home Depot and Wal-Mart set up shop across the highway. Then Frank Scott Parkway was built and a new off-ramp from Interstate 64 was added at Green Mount Road. Those developments led to a new Target store just five minutes away.

"That was pretty much it for us," Beykirch said. "All the independents are gone, just about. It's a real shame. The thing we're going to miss the most is our customers, each and every one of them."

The Green Store, which got its name from the varying shades of green the flat-topped building has been painted over the years, carried an eclectic and varied line of goods ranging from auto parts to scented candles. It also had a wide range of tools and home repair supplies that made the place a Mecca for fix-it-myself types.

Ward 4 Alderman Allen Medford said that when he moved to town 12 years ago, a friend told him the first thing he needed to know about living in O'Fallon was how to get to the Green Store.

"He told me they could help you with anything," Medford said. "And he was right. One time, I looked all over for a lamp pull chain and nobody had what I was looking for. I went into the Green Store and asked them if they had any, and they said, 'Sure. What color do you want?' It has been a real institution in this town."

Beykirch said the Green Store at one time had 15 employees, not including herself and her husband. But she said it now has only three.

"We're trying to help them get jobs," Beykirch said. And we're also trying to find them for ourselves, too."

Starting today, everything except a few automotive items will be on sale for 50 percent off. Also available are the store fixtures, office equipment, a forklift, a van and a pickup truck.

The store will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

Contact reporter Scott Wuerz at swuerz@bnd.com or 239-2626.