He was newly married, his first child was on the way. And he decided it was the perfect time to buy his first K2 Industrial store.
‘‘It was pretty daunting as a 26-year-old,’’ he admitted.
‘‘We sold our house to buy the business and rented for a couple of years.
‘‘We bought the business 23 years ago on April Fool’s Day.’’
But looking back, he said it’s all been worth it, with the original Kyabram store still thriving and the Echuca store, which has now been open for eight years, growing day by day.
It may sound cliche, but when it comes to K2 Industrial it’s true — it really is a one-stop shop.
And a heaven-on-earth for farmers in the region.
The store’s diverse range includes bearings, power transmission, bolts and fasteners, safety wear, power and hand tools, lubricants and filters and engineering supplies.
Although Stuart saw a market for a store in Echuca when he first took up business in Kyabram 23 years ago, he said it took him more than a decade to turn that dream into a reality.
‘‘There’s a lot of opportunity here in Echuca,’’ he said.
‘‘Sadly Kyabram is reliant on water and that’s obviously an issue there. But there’s a lot more scope in Echuca, there’s more irrigated land and broad acre, plus more food processing places.
Stuart said the store will continue to be a haven for local farmers for years to come.
‘‘We’ve tried to make it so if a farmer comes in for one piece of gear, he can leave with everything else he needs.
‘‘We listen to what our customers want and that’s where we’ve grown. If there’s a void, we try to fill it.’’
K2 Industrial Echuca is open Monday to Friday 8am to 5.30pm, Saturday 8.30am to 12pm and closed Sunday.
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