Route 66 With Renee: Independents Thrive in Flagstaff

After getting some sleep at the Hiway House Motel Wednesday night, we got up bright and early, ready for our long drive to Arizona.

Our drive along Route 66 continues to get better the further west we travel, and during our trek from Albuquerque, I couldn’t help but stare out the window in awe at the mountains and unique terrain that we hadn’t seen in earlier parts of our drive.

Once again, our first visit for the day would be at a home improvement retailer, so I was looking forward to see the store and find out the unique things the business does in its community.

After making some stops in Flagstaff, we’d veer off Route 66 a little bit to visit Sedona, Arizona, and learn about the Main Street organization and the local community.

Day 4: Flagstaff/Sedona

Late Thursday morning, we finally arrived at our first stop, HomCo Lumber & Hardware.

Upon our arrival, Christina Russo, marketing coordinator for the business, greeted us and introduced us to Shawn Whitehead, the store manager, and Todd Callan, chief operating officer. We did a quick tour of the business, which was impressive in size, and I couldn’t help but look at all of the personal touches that made it stand out.

At the front of the store, there is a mural of Flagstaff that features HomCo and emphasizes the operation’s local pride. All of the aisles featured street signs above the aisle numbers, which represented actual streets in Flagstaff.

On all of the surrounding walls, there were blown-up black-and-white photos of the business over the years. The photos slide to reveal extra product stocked and ready to be used to fill the aisles.

In addition to the personal touches you wouldn’t find in a big box, the HomCo staff took their merchandising to the next level.

Inside the front of the store, they have a mock chandelier made out of plungers, and they had a wide variety of YETI products for customers to see as soon as they walk in the door.

After admiring the store and walking through the aisles, it was time to start the video interviews. Russo, Whitehead and Callan all took turns talking about the business and why supporting local businesses is so important to them and in the Flagstaff community.

“I don’t think there’s much not to love about Flagstaff,” Russo says. “We’ve been in Flagstaff for 37 years, and not only have we grown, but we’ve grown with the community. We’re a town where being a neighbor to somebody still means something, and that’s not something you find that often anymore.”

After snapping a quick group picture with the HomCo team, we headed to Fratelli Pizza in downtown Flagstaff. They had delicious lunch offerings for a really good price. I enjoyed a wonderful slice of pesto pizza and a salad.

The area where Fratelli’s is located is really cool, and nearly all of the surrounding businesses were local spots, from quirky coffee shops to unique boutiques and sporting goods stores.

Our group couldn’t help but drive with the windows down, breathing in the Flagstaff mountain air.

Our last stop in Flagstaff was at AZ Power and Lawn, a local Stihl dealer that has been in the area for several years. We learned about the business, shot some video and then hopped in the car for our visits in Sedona. Although we had to go a bit off the Route 66 path, we were excited to see what the local businesses were like in the Sedona community.

As we got closer to our destination, we drove through the mountains and couldn’t help but be amazed by the views. For me, coming from Indianapolis, mountains are such a beautiful sight I don’t usually get to see that I couldn’t help but take photos and videos during the drive.

After about an hour driving, we arrived at the Sedona Main Street offices, where we met Holly Epright. Her office was tucked into the beautiful scenery, and we were able to record her video with the mountains as the backdrop.

Originally from the East Coast, Epright had visited Sedona many times over the years before their entire family relocated to the beautiful mountain town. This was a theme we started to see in anyone we met or talked to the rest of our time in Sedona. Most of those in the community are transplants that found themselves drawn to the town.

“Those who live in Sedona are generally creative, passionate people who are very concerned about preserving the natural beauty and integrity of the rural character that is here,” Epright says. “They are also very community-minded,” Epright says.

After she shared all of the ways local businesses and Main Streets contribute to society and the Sedona community, we thanked her for her time and headed off to our last stop of the day, Sedona Paint Center.

While at the store, we had the chance to meet one of the managers and a few paint contractors that use Sedona Paint as opposed to the big-box stores.

In both Flagstaff and Sedona, the overall vibe was one of supporting the local community, keeping the money local and a sense of calm and happiness. Even this worn-out road trip crew felt revitalized after driving through the mountains in Arizona, and we got our second wind to finish out the road trip strong tomorrow in California.

We enjoyed dinner at a local spot near our hotel, which was the Southwest Inn at Sedona. It was a spa resort that brought the comforts of home to the hotel room.

After enjoying dinner and great conversation, we headed back and turned in for the night early, as the next day would be our earliest departure at 4 a.m.

Check in tomorrow to read all about the last day in Los Angeles and our last stop at the Santa Monica pier. Follow the last leg of the trip on Hardware Retailing’s Facebook and Twitter accounts, as well as NRHA’s Facebook and Twitter pages. On Monday, we’ll have a recap of the entire journey, so stay tuned!