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Washington Evening Journal
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Hardware store reopens in Keota
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
Jim Malley was working at a hardware store in Keota years before humanity landed on the moon. He eventually became the store’s co-owner, then its owner and namesake. And when he retired at the end of 2024, it seemed the long-beloved business and community fixture would leave with him, as he closed the store one last time at the end of a 65-year career.
But in February, Malley Hardware reopened with the same name and new ownership. Julianna Berg, who runs the store now, said it was an essential amenity for residents in the area. And when nobody stepped up to buy the inventory or building from Malley himself, Berg took matters into her own hands.
“We’re such an agrarian community, agriculture is like, everything, and it doesn’t make sense for our farmers to be leaving and driving 20, 30 minutes to pick up a nut or a bolt, or any tool they might need,” she said.
“Absolutely, this is our business, but it is also a community service. It’s here because our community needs it, and I can’t be here without a community,” Berg continued. “And it only makes sense to do the absolute most I can for this community … we are so heavily invested in our community and care so much that we don’t want to see things die out.”
The hardware store has taken on a number of changes in the last few months, though it’s kept the name of its former owner as an homage to his decades of service.
For one, it has a revamped nuts and bolts aisle. Malley’s was once infamous for its disorganized collection of fasteners in a collection of drawers at the back of the store. Now, the pieces are organized with a dedicated aisle of their own. Berg said she spoke with a wide variety of trade professionals as she decided how to stock the section.
“I had my rep come in, and we talked over everything,” she said. “What do my farmers need, what does my mechanic down the street need, what do they want me to have on hand? Plumbers, any of these people … they’re often people I look to for feedback.”
When customers came in for pieces she didn’t have, Berg asked about how often they used the part they were looking for, and how many she should keep on-hand in the shop.
The new owner has also added a credit card reader, a computer and receipt printer. The store’s finances were previously handled entirely on pen and paper.
While improvements make the business more functional, Berg said she was careful to balance utility with the more rustic charm of a local hardware store. She has no plans to change the aesthetic of the building, complete with handwritten signs, and a heavy wooden front door.
“It is an experience, it’s not just going into Ace Hardware or a big box store, you’re coming in and it feels cozy and inviting,” Berg said. “Maintaining the charm and that homey feeling while modernizing is a balancing act, but I think it can be done, if we do it delicately.”
Berg has added an upholstery and sewing business to the storefront as well, where she repairs everything from clothes to seat cushions to leather jackets. She also hopes to convert an upper story of the building into apartments, once she’s more settled into the retail business at street-level.
Those endeavors also aim to address a void in the market, like a shortage of affordable housing, and the recent bankruptcy of nationwide fabric craft store Joann Fabric.
“There’s a pretty big void in the market, especially in small communities,” she said. “Where do people go in small communities for their crafting supplies? And how great is it that you can just come down the street for your quilting supplies, or sewing machines, or even just a needle and some thread?”
One thing will remain the same, Berg said: the name. While no longer owned by Mr. Malley, she said the words written above the front door were iconic, and she doubted anyone in the small town would call it by any other name, even if it were changed.
The management of such a pivotal business comes with lots of pressure — Berg and one shopper interviewed by The Union both called the store “an institution” for Keota, in separate interviews.
Berg has never run a retail operation before. She has long helped out on the farm where she lives with her husband, offering some experience with inventory management, and plenty with sewing and fabric repair she’s now leveraging for revenue.
But the business of sales, storefront organization and eventually employee management falls further from her wheelhouse. Despite learning those skills on the job, she said she was quickly getting comfortable at the helm of Malley’s.
“It’s hard to explain, but you know when something just feels right? That’s this, for us,” Berg said. “This feels like a second home for us. All of it just makes sense, it just fits really well … I’ve had next to zero bad interactions with my customers, everyone’s been really patient with me, which I so appreciate.”
Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com
