There’s a new kid on the block at Kent Plaza. Tractor Supply Co. is planning to open a new store in the building previously occupied for 26 years by Roses Discount Store.
TSC, A Tennessee based company, is the nation’s leading retailer in the “rural lifestyle” market.
Although you can’t buy tractors, its website states that customers can find “clothing, equine and pet supplies, tractor/trailer parts and accessories, lawn and garden supplies, sprinkler/irrigation parts, power tools, fencing, welding and pump supplies, riding mowers and more” at their stores.
Founded in 1939, TSC started as a mail order tractor parts business. A year later it became a retail store in Minot, North Dakota, and now boasts 1,300 stores in 48 states.
TSC trades on NASDAQ at a healthy $88.71 (today).
The Chestertown location will be in addition to TSC stores in Easton, Pocomoke City, Salisbury, Elkton, and in Middletown and Seaford Delaware on the Eastern Shore.
Representatives of the company are currently in discussions with the Chestertown Zoning Board.
Karen Willis says
I hate to say it Tractor Supply but what this area really needs is some type of department store.
Marge Fallaw says
I second Karen’s comment. It’s disgusting how many everyday-type items could once be found at Rose’s but are now nowhere to be found in Chestertown. What we don’t need is another “rural lifestyle” store, a niche that the Kingstown Farm, Home & Garden seems to be filling well, with some items also already available in other places locally.
Betsy Ricketts says
And this is really going to hurt Kingstown, a small hometown store.
Chestertown doesn’t need a Tractor Supply. Stop just filling these empty buildings with stores that the town ALREADY has.
Keep shopping Kingstown, keep it local.
linda hall says
Wow. Just what we need, more hardware and automotive stores. Where can we go to buy toys for xmas gifts. for our church, or pick up a windbreaker for a gusset rom the south who forgot to pack one or buy an extra sheet or bath towel when company comes. Look for a decoration for a holiday. Nowhere in Chestertown now. I know we have Dollar stores but they can’t carry everything that roses did. I’m glad the space is to be filled but unhappy with the final outcome. they will be competing with JBK which is great!
Linda Roe says
And people wonder why we go else ware to shop for clothing and household items the er e is nothing here
Marty Stetson says
I concur with the Mayor’s remarks, Tractor Supply will be a very welcome addition to our community. I have often stopped in the ones located in Middletown and Easton, they kind of remind me of my visit to the “feed store” when I was a kid. I do not have a horse that needs feed any longer but I can relive that feeling of being young again when I am in the store. My daughter who lives out of the area and does have horses often visits the Tractor Supply in her area.
Keith Thompson says
It’s interesting to see the negative comments concerning the plans for TSC coming to Chestertown. I think that those who don’t think that Chestertown needs a “rural lifestyle” store are missing the bigger picture. Kent County is an agricultural county. Where are county residents in areas such as Kennedyville, Chesterville, Millington, Galena, etc. going for their supplies? I’d bet a lot of them are going to TSC in Middletown. While in Middletown, they’re also probably clothes shopping at Wal-Mart or Kohls, getting gas at WaWa, eating dinner at Texas Roadhouse or Buffalo Wild Wings, etc. Now, if something like TSC brings more of these rural county residents to Chestertown instead of Middletown, then don’t you create more of an incentive for someone to open up, say a department store? It’s the same argument I hear from J.R. Alfree of Lemon Leaf and JR’s on why he supports more restaurants in Chestertown, in that more restaurants creates more options and therefore more traffic and everyone benefits. The same argument also applies to the increase in arts related businesses in Chestertown. Increasing the arts options doesn’t harm the artists due to competition, but brings in more people which benefits all the artists. Even direct competitors to TSC such as JBK or Kingstown should benefit due to an increase in traffic that TSC could bring.
Contrast this with the lauded addition of Redner’s which should do more than attract ACME customers as the addition of Redner’s creates another reason for county residents to shop in Chestertown rather than in Middletown. Just as the increased traffic Redner’s brings in will likely help fill up empty spaces at Washington Square, increased traffic from TSC should help fill up some empty spaces at the Kent Plaza.
There seems to be a mindset of some that more options and more competition equates to everyone getting a smaller slice of the pie. I’d prefer to simply make more pies.
joe diamond says
Keith,
Agriculture has abandoned Kent County, Maryland.
Look at the size of the equipment used in the fields. One man can control hundreds of acres per day. There is no picking work. the same man can pick the hundreds of acres he planted a few months earlier. After seed, fertilizer, fuel, equipment, land costs, taxes and a little profit…….there is nothing left!
Anyone without 1000 acres is out of the game!
Consider the numerous ways farmers avoid paying a living wage, paying overtime, or conforming to DOT hours for travel. Even with the Farm Bill the world is kicking small farms in the ass. They are gone. Future Farmers of America…here…really? Go to Nebraska!
Unfortunately………..(my opinion about the unfortunately part)…. the local planning and zoning board agrees with you. When all the farms are either one big one or all gone….will this place still be considered an agricultural county?
Joe
Keith Thompson says
Joe,
So if agriculture has abandoned Kent County, what do you suggest replace it? Wind turbines? Perhaps you have cracked the code!
On a more serious note, I like the push from the commissioners to tap into the broadband resources to complete the last mile access for the county. I think that broadband access is critical to attract small business as well as home-based business into Kent County.
joe diamond says
Keith,
Yes the last mile internet connection would be a major jump. It would change the area without building a bridge!
I think the wind turbines will go away on their own…no wind…no money. But the commissioners are against most other stuff…solar is nice but they walked that one out the door too. Can’t figure which is better…hire lawyers or elect new commissioners. As it is, many just vote with their feet. They leave for college or the military and never come back.
Joe
Joe Diamond says
Joe,
You forgot to remind Keith that agriculture and replace agriculture. This place was a prime peach and vine area. Eastern Shore water melons were world beaters. This place can row some tomatoes! Strawberries and blueberries do well here. You go to any local grocery and the produce section is like the United Nations. For reasons I only suspect it is cheaper to ship produce around the world then grow it here.
Likewise there was a shirt factory here…in Rock Hall. There were canneries all over the shore. Vanished!
The new store will probably continue the tradition, not with produce, but with stuff from China and Mexico.
Don’t know how to fix it.
Joe
Mary Wood says
Keith Thompson’s comments don’t answer the question – Where do we go to buy household things like sheets, or inexpensive clothes?
Keith Thompson says
Mary, to answer your question…Middletown, and that’s precisely the problem. Too many county residents are going to Middletown rather than coming to Chestertown.
I think instead of saying “Chestertown needs a store for residents to buy household things like sheets, or inexpensive clothes?”, you should be asking “how can we get someone who sells sheets or inexpensive clothes to invest in Chestertown by opening their business here?”. The perspective that is missing here is that in order for Chestertown to be attractive enough for a business to invest here by putting in a business, there has to be enough of a market for the investment to be profitable. As long as your view of Chestertown’s market is shortsighted enough where you solely concentrate on who lives inside the town limits, then the town’s population and demographics are simply not enough. You have to make Chestertown a destination that draws in people from throughout the county and beyond. That is precisely what TSC should do…it will bring people into Chestertown who otherwise don’t have a reason to come to Chestertown. Once that TSC shopper is in Chestertown, there is a good chance that they’ll also make a stop at other Chestertown businesses. Increase the number of people coming to Chestertown to shop, then you increase the likelihood that someone will invest in opening a store that sells sheets or clothes. So while you may not shop at TSC, I think you should applaud the company for seeing enough of a business opportunity in Chestertown to invest here. Get enough businesses to invest in Chestertown, then there will eventually be one that you’ll patronize.
I have never visited a TSC store, but I do pass by the one in Middletown everyday on my way to work here. I would suspect that there is a significant number of people from Kent County who shop at TSC (just as they do at so many other Middletown businesses), so it would make sense for them to open a Chestertown franchise since they see a market here. It makes sense that the local Chestertown and Kent County governments would support TSC’s investment here rather than have a vacant property in hopes that someone else will open there.
Jim Luff says
Keith, you are spot on as to the fact the county lacks “critical mass” to make it profitable for someone to invest in the area at this point in time. There is no need to re-visit history and the number of times that larger retailers were rejected in the town and county. Our population has been basically static for the last fifty years. However, the demographics have changed. In the next five years, the 24 to 54 year age group will decrease by 5.6% and the 55 to 65+ will increase by 5.7%. We are surrounded by “big box” stores in Talbot and Caroline counties as well as Middletown, Delaware. We must welcome those businesses who believe that they can serve our niche market. Perhaps we can turn the migration out of the county to migration into the county. The commercial/retail will follow that demand.
lee phillips says
I’d rather see Bed,Bath and Beyond, come to town.
Pete Buxtun says
I think what everyone on here naysaying is missing is the fact that who or which corporation chooses to occupy a location is not up to the town or county. In fact, what you “would rather” have is immaterial. I “would rather” have a Wegmans than an ACME. I “would rather” have a vibrant, busy marina with a dock bar/restaurant serving crabs on a large outside deck than the current FW. I “would rather” have a Tesla gigafactory in Kent County than another cheesy sub-development.
If wishes were horses.
If you can’t figure out where to buy sheets, I don’t know what to tell you. You clearly have the internet since you are complaining about TSC online. Have you tried Amazon?
Steve Payne says
Peebles has come a long way in the last 3 or 4 years in my opinion. They have almost everything a larger department store has with a little less selection. The new front and larger signage should help it even more.
https://www.stagestores.com/store/findyourstore/maryland/chestertown/5024
Donna Frey says
What about those who currently are leading at Kent plaza that have a no-compete clause in their lease?
joe diamond says
Steve………..Peebles has the best staff and best organized store I have found anywhere. They work for the business! Alas, 20,000 locals who buy stuff at Christmas won’t keep the lights on.
I might suggest a sports pub for men holding purses outside the lady’s changing rooms………..Guys need some space too!
Joe
Steve Payne says
Joe, I went to Peebles a few times when I first moved here in “05. You could hardly tell the store was even there and the stock and service was fairly poor. I think with the new signage, presentation, and remodelling of the center they have a decent chance of making it. The ownership changed not too long ago too.
Small markets are what they do 🙂
Joe diamond says
Steve,
Yes, my early impressions of the place were just that of a store seeking to sell to women & their babies. Clerks dusted things and counted piles of stuff.
Recent visits have been as if it were a different place. Helpful staff will direct you to what you are looking for. I have been checking them before doing the Dover drive.
Joe
John Rolfe says
See, this is the problem. People in Chestertown complain about everything. People want to be able to ahve the small town feel, and complain about any bigger stores coming to town, so then the stores go somewhere else. It is very possible to have both a historic downtown and a town with lots of stores and restaurants. Look at Dover, Middletown, Easton, Smyrna, the list goes on.
TSC will at least bring something to put in the vacant spot sitting there. they will at least bring business into town. Chestertown had a chance for a walmart and people freaked out. That would have brought people from Rock Hall, Millington (if heading into town anyway) Church Hill, and any people passing through. But The towns citizens decided it would be a bad idea, and now everyone i know(myself included) go to middletown or Dover for all their shopping needs. Renders helps a bit but you cant get everything there.
Moral of the story: Tell the older and Generation in charge of the downtown area to make up their minds. Small shops downtown have closed up, People want to stay in town and spend money, So Give us something to spend it on. Its time chestertown gets with the times, otherwise its all going to fall apart.
Gerry Maynes says
The real problem for towns like Chestertown that are close to the Delaware line is simple. Your state has a fairly large sales tax even of food), Delaware does not. It is the same problem that has existed for twenty years or more. Why buy a washer or a Dryer and pay a huge tax on it, when with a short drive I can buy it in Delaware?
As far as A Wegmans, You simply do not have enough bodies or income to support it. Fluff costs money, in reality Acmes meat is the same grade as Wegmans, just merchandised better Fix the sales tax and your problems will be solved.
Stephan Sonn says
The reality is that the new store will be a spoiler. Roses was suited to the community. But that was of no concern to Cordish.
Kay S. says
Sorry, but Chestertown does not need a TSC. Like others said, Kingstown FHG is meeting the needs for those needing rural supplies. And I’m sorry, but what real farmer shops at TSC? It’s mostly patronized by homeowners and those with livestock. What we could use is a store like Big Lots. Lots of items, but not outrageous prices like many other department stores that may not do well in this area.
Roses was a heap…outdated and dirty. A Big Lots would do well here, I think.
Angela short says
Tractor supply is a great addition maybe if the single minded people of this town would have allowed Walmart to come and stop worrying about overpriced downtown then all would be happy..there is more to this town then downtown.. I believe we also need real restaurants not fast food..just my opinion