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ALTON/EDWARDSVILLE/BREESE – St. Peters Hardware and Rental stays busy year-round, and owner Dan St. Peters is proud of the business his family has built.
With locations in Alton, Edwardsville and Breese, the store offers tools and equipment as well as a wide selection of rental items, from tents and chairs to dunk tanks. St. Peters noted that while the business has grown a lot over the past few decades, the core of their mission — to serve the community — is always the same.
“Customers’ needs change, so we’ve grown as well as changed with those needs,” he said. “Back when my grandfather opened the store, most important to him was taking care of the customers that came in the front door. Anything you do other than that really doesn’t matter if you don’t take care of the customers that come in. We pride ourselves on customer service and making sure we help our customers out.”
St. Peters’s grandfather bought the hardware store in 1946. The original store was 19 feet by 33 feet; today, the store’s rental counter is bigger than that.
Over the years, the St. Peters family has worked hard. St. Peters and his father now own the business, and they are determined to continue growing.
The business has a wide variety of tools, equipment and other hardware store staples. They also offer maintenance on items like lawnmowers and snowblowers.
The rental side of the business has expanded in recent years. St. Peters noted that they regularly rent out tents, tables and chairs for graduations, weddings and other events.
Other equipment, from champagne fountains to dunk tanks, is rented for parties. They also help with annual special events like the Marquette Catholic High School homecoming, Godfrey’s Bike MS, and Belleville’s Oktoberfest.
St. Peters expressed his appreciation for the RiverBend Growth Association, which has helped him secure a few of these events. He noted that the RBGA’s member meetings and events allow him to network with other businesses and get to know the community better. He is a proud member of the Growth Association.
“That’s how that networking pays off, going to the [RiverBend Growth Association] events,” he said. “The Growth Association is a great organization that supports this community. It really does. As a member, I can take advantage of a lot of different things.”
As St. Peters Hardware and Rental continues to grow, St. Peters encourages people to stop by one of their stores or visit their official website to discover how the business can help you. He is happy to be a staple in the Riverbend community, and he can’t wait to continue serving his customers, working with his employees, and engaging with organizations like RBGA.
“At the end of the day, when the store closes at 6 o’clock and I go home, I know that everything is taken care of. That’s the main thing,” he added. “The guys we have working with us both at the hardware and rental, they know. We will get the job done.”
For more information about the RiverBend Growth Association, visit their official website.
This featured article is sponsored by the RiverBend Growth Association. To get your business or organization featured on www.RiverBender.com, contact us at sales@riverbender.com.
