Rickel (known as Rickel Brothers in its early years, Rickel Supermarts in the 1960s, and Rickel Home Centers in later years) was a chain of home-improvement centers based in northern New Jersey. The company’s first store opened in 1953 and for three decades Rickel was the leading hardware, plumbing, heating and electrical retailer in its region. At its peak Rickel operated over 90 stores, but competition from Home Depot, debt problems with its former parent, and an ultimately ill-advised merger with competitor Channel Home Centers led to a 1996 bankruptcy filing and liquidation and closure starting in late 1997 and continuing through early 1998.
Founding
The origins of the company date back to 1946 when brothers Al, Mort, and Bob Rickel went into business for themselves in Newark, New Jersey. The brothers formed their own heating business, continuing a family tradition.
An anecdotal story says that a few years later, the brothers purchased a warehouse full of plumbing supplies for "next to nothing". In many cases, a contractor involved in heating is also involved in plumbing, but the Rickel brothers were not. Since they were unfamiliar with plumbing, they had no idea what the actual value of the haul was and sought help. A friend put them in touch with a plumber named Bill Ryan, who agreed to go through the items and determine how much they would sell for.
Plumbing supplies were usually sold wholesale at this time, which presented a problem for Al, Mort, and Bob. With the massive amount of supplies they had, it was likely going to take a significant amount of time for them to sell them off to local plumbers. They came up with an idea that, at the time, had been unheard of. The idea was to start a business selling the supplies to the general public at retail cost, with Ryan as their salesman. In that role, the brothers felt that he could not only sell the supplies to the people but pass along his plumbing knowledge to advise customers on how to fix their own toilets, sinks, drains, etc., and making sure they had the correct parts to perform the repair. So, in 1953 Al, Mort, and Bob opened up the first Rickel Brothers store in Union, New Jersey, and Ryan was warmly referred to as "employee number one" for his entire 35-year stint with the Rickel store chain.
Rickel was one of the first "do-it-yourself" home improvement stores, eventually expanding beyond plumbing supplies and selling heating and electrical supplies and tools in addition. An early slogan and jingle of the Rickel chain, which lasted in some degree to its 1997 closure, was "Rickel Helps You Do it Better- Do it Better With Rickel"- a reflection of the Rickel brothers' focus which included employees who could explain to customers how to perform their own home repairs. The concept took off and enabled 'Rickels' (as the store came to be known locally) to develop a loyal customer base.
Growth
The Rickels began expanding quickly after their first store became a success and by the early 1960s were operating three locations, all in New Jersey: Succasunna, Paramus, East Brunswick, and a new location in Union. By 1967 the "Rickel Supermarts" chain (as the stores were now known) had six stores, all in New Jersey, opening in Menlo Park and Wayne. The Rickels then began expanding at a more rapid pace, opening more stores in New Jersey and entering the New York and Pennsylvania markets for the first time. During this time a corporate headquarters was established in South Plainfield, New Jersey, which also served as Rickel's primary distribution center.
The Rickel brothers sold the still-growing chain of Rickel Supermarts to Supermarkets General Corporation, the parent company of the Pathmark supermarket chain, in 1969. After the sale SGC renamed the chain "Rickel Home Centers", which lasted until Rickel's closure. In 1973 Rickel built their South Plainfield, New Jersey executive office headquarters, which doubled as a distribution and storage center that had been expanded to nearly 800,000 square feet by 1988. In 1975, the Rickel division of SGC recorded $80 million (~$ in ) in sales and was the dominant home improvement retailer in the region, far outselling its larger competitors Channel Lumber and Pergament. The subsequent decade was a time of continued expansion as the Rickel chain grew to over 30 stores by the mid-eighties.