In the heart of downtown Camden is a sight hard to find these days — a thriving, locally-owned hardware store — and it’s all thanks to a young couple willing to take a risk and a community eager to welcome them with open arms.

When Katie and Lee Turner moved to Camden in 2021 with their three young sons, they had planned on opening a greenhouse business like the one they had in Virginia prior to relocating to Alabama.

That changed though when Jimmy Pugh, who had been running the Coast to Coast hardware store for more than 40 years, approached the newcomers about taking over its ownership. While Katie Turner said she was hesitant at first, they ultimately decided to trust their instincts and try something new.

“We had been in the store several times when Jimmy [Pugh], the former owner of the store, approached us wanting to sell,” said Turner. “I thought it was crazy because this is not what we had planned, but then we talked about it more. It is a wonderful store, and it was the perfect way for us to kind of implant right into the community and get to know all the locals. We said we’re going to take a leap of faith and see what happens, and so, we bought it.”

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Turner said the couple were inspired to take on the business even more after hearing how much the hardware store, which has evolved into a furniture and appliance store as well over the years, mattered and served an essential need to people in Camden. The closest big box store is about a 40-minute drive.

“It was an established part of the community, and everyone spoke so highly of it,” said Turner. “It’s an iconic and central part of the little town here. Everyone told us how they depended on it because it is a small town and there’s no Walmart or Tractor Supply, there’s nothing like that here.”

While Coast to Coast is considered a hardware store, it carries everything, from the general goods, like hammers, nails and other tools, you’d expect to find as well as hunting supplies, toys, seasonal decorations, clothing and more in addition to furniture, appliances and feed in accompanying buildings within the same block.

When the Turners took over, they put Lee’s horticulture background to work by adding a greenhouse to offer ferns and flowers as well as fresh herbs and vegetables to the store’s customers as well. It’s been an addition that Turner said residents were happy to have available.

“The community really welcomed us,” said Turner. “They were excited that someone was coming in that was going to keep it the same, but also grow it, and they’ve all been really excited about how we’ve added in a lot of new things. You know, coming into a small town, if you haven’t been a part of that community yet, you don’t really know if it’ll be accepting, but everyone was really welcoming. Instantly, it was just like we had always been here and everyone treated us just like family.”

Speaking of family, Turner said another element of running the hardware store that appealed to them was that it meant their sons, who range in age from 3 to 12, could stay close-by even when Katie and Lee were working and could join in and be a part of the process and day-to-day experiences of owning a business.

“I didn’t want something where I was going to have to be away from them, and Lee didn’t either, so this was something we could add our three sons into,” said Turner. “You know, my 3-year-old learned how to walk in the store and our older boys, they help with the ordering. They help me pick out toys to order because they know better than I do. It’s kind of something we can do as a family.”

Turner said she hopes to continue adding to the store’s offerings while maintaining its legacy as well as its dependability for its loyal customers and has big plans for how to do so in the coming years.

“Now that we’ve had it a couple years and kind of gotten some experience under our belts, we’re excited to see it grow,” said Turner. “We’re going to keep everything the same that everyone loves about the store here, but we also want to grow it to provide more of what the community needs. It means a lot to us.”

Coast to Coast is located at 201 Claiborne Street in Camden and open varying hours, Monday through Saturday. To find out more, visit their Facebook page.