With the snip of a ribbon on a clear and cold November morning, a 113-year-old retail store opened its newest location to serve customers in the Fay-West area.
Peebles, a South Hill, Va.,-based department store chain, is now operating a site where the Ames store was located at Countryside Plaza in East Huntingdon Township, at the intersection of Route 119 and Route 819 between Scottdale and Mount Pleasant.
"I'm a total shopaholic," said Patricia Walker, mayor of Scottdale. "I'm glad the store is located between Scottdale and Mount Pleasant so people don't have to go far."
Sources for name-brand, department-store-quality clothing and accessories are scant in the Fay-West area, according to store manager Barbara Cairns. A resident of Connellsville, Cairns and four other area residents were hired by Peebles to run the store. An additional 10 to 20 part-time sales associates will be employed throughout the year.
"The main goal of this store is to provide the area with the best fashion, prices and service available," she said.
According to Debbie Myers, a Peebles vice president and district manager, the company is always looking for small communities to open new locations. Peebles operates 600 stores nationwide, with many of them in Pennsylvania.
"We felt there was a need here," she said. "People in this area were traveling far to purchase the sort of clothing and items we carry."
At a grand opening celebration this November, about 60 people waited outside for the new store to open. The Southmoreland High School Marching Band provided entertainment.
"No matter what, people in our society enjoy shopping," said Gerald Lucia, mayor of Mount Pleasant. "This store is bringing new variety into the area. The turnout this morning shows that people were waiting for it."
W.S. Peebles Sr. opened his first department store in Lawrenceville, Va., a small but booming railroad community. His merchandise ranged from farm implements to produce to fine apparel.
After the founder's death in 1931, three of his sons, C.W. Peebles, W.S. Peebles Jr. and M.W. Peebles assumed command of company operations, which by then included two new stores along the Atlantic and Danville Railroad line.
Now, instead of the railroad, modern retail technology bonds the Peebles stores together into an efficient, centralized organization. The company boasts low prices because of an in-house computer enhanced inventory management system, and guaranteed volume purchasing and prompt delivery to stores with a fleet of company trucks.
"Now we don't have to travel 10 to 20 miles to go shopping," Lucia said. "We can do it right in our own backyard."
