Kidron businesses see healthy, sustained growth
The side of a barn is a perfect billboard for some of the businesses thriving today in Kidron.
Editor’s note: This is the fourth installment in a series on Wayne County’s villages and smaller towns.
Ranee Yoder and her husband, Larry, own Kidron Town and Country, located in the village of Kidron with a population of 922 — an oddly specific estimate. “My husband grew up working there (at the Kidron Town and Country), bagging groceries. He told me that we’d buy it some day, and at first I didn’t believe him,” Ranee Yoder said.
Four years ago the couple achieved their dream of owning the business, which contains a grocery store, shoe department, pharmacy and ‘50s-style diner complete with a counter and bar stools. About half of their clientele are Amish, who drive horse-drawn buggies or electric bicycles and continue their errands by foot across the village.
The Village of Kidron could be defined in three rather different ways.
One could describe the village as a tourist destination, home of Lehman’s, whose store and online business have received national media attention.
“Our 35,000 square feet of retail space draw a lot of foot traffic to the village of Kidron. Some say that we probably attract more visitors to Wayne County than any other entity. Kidron is the gateway to Amish Country. Many stop here, then continue south to the rolling hills of Holmes County,” said Glenda Ervin, vice president of marketing and daughter of the late Jay Lehman, who founded Lehman’s in 1955.
Yet another way to define Kidron is an authentic place where you get a glimpse into what an agricultural village used to look like in the past. Looking around the town’s square, one sees Kidron Auction grounds, LE Sommer’s feed mill, Gerber Lumber, and Kidron Town and Country, all of which have existed for nearly 100 years.
“We’re somewhat isolated from the urbanization trends you see in some of the cities. Kidron has a family feel to the community, where we care for one other,” said Steve Gerber, co-owner of Gerber Lumber.
A third way of thinking about Kidron is as a flourishing area of business activity, supporting a diversified rural economy.
“We have definitely seen a trend toward growth with this whole pandemic. I do think there is a great loyalty to the small stores since the pandemic started. Even businesses on the outskirts of Kidron — I’ve spoken with them — they are also having record years right now,” Yoder said.
All three of these descriptions are accurate, yet none paint a complete picture on their own.
The village has approximately 27 businesses in its Merchant’s Association.
“Kidron is marked by the uniqueness of businesses we have here. We have a store called World Crafts who supports artisans from around the world; they do charitable work. There’s Weaver Shoe, that makes belts from leather. We have a furniture store and a greenhouse,” said Chris Hess, president of the Kidron Merchant’s Association.
Hess said the combination of their unique stores and the fact that Kidron’s not densely populated — they don’t have a Bell Store or office buildings — give the village a niche market, differentiating them from other communities.
Lehman’s has 50 employees at its Kidron location. And they certainly fill a niche market. Ervin spoke of Lehman’s, going back to when her father founded the store.
“The one thing that made it different is he decided to continue with the old-fashioned, nonelectric products that the Amish purchased,” she said. “In the 1950s that was common, but we have continued with that. We now market to a much larger category of homesteaders, environmentally minded and the chronically nostalgic, like myself. You may have heard of Cottagecore, which is a new movement about getting people closer to their food source; it’s a more relaxing, back-to-nature way to live. It fits Lehman’s brand, but also we just think it’s a better way to live.”
Lehman’s impact goes beyond the direct jobs it created. The company has a network of local and Amish vendors that make things by hand, so it is boosting the economy through its supply chains as well.
Similarly, Gerber Lumber’s economic reach extends beyond its 75 employees (between two locations). Gerber Lumber has contractors coming from the south and customers whose job sites are to the north. “We sell to commercial contractors; 80% of what we sell is delivered,” Gerber said.
There’s another indicator of the economic activity taking place in Kidron: the village is home to three financial institutions. These three stand strong against a growing trend for rural counties in the U.S. to see a considerable decline in their number of bank branches, according to a recent report from the Federal Reserve. Thus, the presence of multiple banks suggests the village is thriving economically and may have a disproportionate economic impact beyond what it appears.
But in the end, it is the culture and the community that residents and business owners appreciate. Ranee Yoder spoke of her experience owning the Kidron Town and Country.
“Kidron is a close-knit community, and we received a great reception and support when we bought the store. I love that when I walk down into the restaurant, people call me by name. It’s a home-town feel,” she said.