Herrington's Invested Locally

In an era when big box stores have hurt many local businesses, particularly in the hardware and home improvement arena, Columbia County-based Ed Herrington, Inc. has a long history here and continues to thrive. The company recently reinforced its commitment to the area with the purchase of three former Dunn Builders Supply stores.

Two of those three stores are located in Columbia County, in Chatham and Greenport, and the third is in Catskill. Herrington's now owns seven stores in three states – New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut. In Columbia County, where its Hillsdale flagship store is also still going strong, Herrington's employs about 120 people.

Herrington's has been family-owned since the business's founding in 1906 as a coal, lumber and feed dealer. Back then, the company was known as Bullock and Herrington. The company was incorporated in 1953 and became Ed Herrington, Inc. In 1967, the company moved into a larger space at its current Hillsdale location, and added broader offerings of hardware, paint and millwork.

The current store in Hillsdale was expanded in 1993, and in 1998 the company purchased Community Service. Along with the former Dunn's sites and the Hillsdale store, Herrington's currently has locations in Millerton, NY; Lakeville, CT; Lenox, MA, and West Springfield, MA.

Herrington's will continue to operate each Dunn store in its current location under the new name Herrington's. The company will retain workforce levels as needed and serve customers with expanded capabilities: higher volume buying power, contractor and residential services, and geographical scope. Since Dunn's stores were also a family-owned business, the acquisition seemed like a natural move.

“We're a family-owned business into the fourth generation of hands-on management, who care about our customers, many of whom we have known and done business with for decades,” said company President Ed Herrington. “From our perspective this is all about smart growth on behalf of our customers. We listen intently to them and their changing needs, and that is what we continue to develop our business model around.”

Herrington believes business has thrived for so many years due to a commitment to providing high-quality building materials and top-level construction expertise.

“We still believe in and practice the same principles of customer service that made Herrington's a success a century ago,” he said.

Allison Neumann, advertising manager for Herrington's, said the company saw a great opportunity when they decided to purchase the Dunn Builders locations.

“We saw an opportunity to bring our services closer to our customers in northern and western Columbia County and to expand into Greene County,” she said. “And with custom countertop fabrication services already established within the former Dunn business, we are able to offer more to our customers for their kitchen and bath design projects.”

Herrington's carries an extensive lumber and landscaping stone inventory, plus employs dedicated contractor sales staff and a knowledgeable phone and store sales staff. Estimators provide blueprint estimating and engineered floor systems design, and, if needed, Herrington's provides architectural assistance with blueprint specifications and job management.

Herrington's offers in-house blueprint copying, Benjamin Moore paints, computer-aided paint color matching, and professional power tool repair. Rentals include power washers, pneumatic flooring nailers, flooring sanders, and loose fill insulation blowers.

At the newly acquired stores, the company is busy working on stocking the best quality lumber, improving store displays and adding products like Benjamin Moore paints, Marvin windows and doors, and stone and masonry products.

“We are planning to bring in more environmentally responsible product offerings to help our customers build and renovate ‘green,'” said Neumann.

“We see the trend toward specialty contractor work, environmentally responsible products, and also second homeowners continuing to buy and build in the greater Hudson Valley,” added Richard Herrington, vice president and general manager. “We're a company that prides itself on knowledge-based solutions and depth as well as breadth of service. This expansion is perfect for our customers and for us.”

Herrington's also supports the community through contributions to many local non-profit organizations. Among them are Habitat for Humanity, Dollars for Scholars of Taconic Hills, and numerous arts organizations and community groups. Recently, Herrington's contributed roofing products for the restoration of the Blinn-Pulver Farmhouse in Chatham village, a project being undertaken by Chatham Village Historical Society.

Neumann emphasized that Herrington's will remain committed to the county where its success began.

“Our company has been family-owned for four generations. We have roots here and we are proud to serve the building needs of our builder, trade and homeowner customers in this area,” she said.

The Chamber of Commerce thanks Herrington's for their commitment to our community. To find hundreds of businesses that are dedicated to their community go to www.columbiachamber-ny.com or call our full-time staff at 828-4417.