Essential truths in East Sacramento: The Hardware Lady looks out for employees and customers

The “Hardware Lady” is equal parts folksy charm and seedy-bar bouncer gruff.

In other words, be her friend, not her foe.

Sheree Johnston is the fiery yet fun owner of East Sac Hardware on Folsom Boulevard. She is blonde, brilliant, slender, expressive, opinionated and tireless. She works the phones, handles orders and greets customers with a “Hey, hon!”

But you’re allowed only one “hon” if you do not obey Johnston’s new mandate on her turf, spelled out throughout her charming store that has been a staple in town since 1951.

Pink strips of tape notify customers of the 6-foot spacing that’s become the norm in social distancing, and when the Hardware Lady has to peer over the rims of her black eyeglasses to remind you of her order, brace for cover.

“Oh, when I look at you this way,” she said Saturday afternoon, “you’d better listen! That’s the old-school teacher in me and I mean business.”

Johnston then let out a laugh. There has been little joy amid the coronavirus pandemic that has shuttered thousands of small businesses across the country, right on through Sacramento.

East Sac Hardware is holding on just fine, too proud to buckle, but the owner worries. That’s what mothers inherently do, and it’s what business leaders are doing unlike any time since perhaps the Great Depression of the 1930s. They fret about their own and their friends in similar business ventures.

The Hill Top Bar directly across the street has been closed since Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered such places to shutter in an effort to quell the spread of the virus that has killed six in Sacramento County and, according to Johns Hopkins University data, nearly 2,200 in the U.S. as of late Sunday morning

“In 35 years, I’ve never seen that bar closed, ever — not even on Christmas,” Johnston said. “I don’t want any small business to close, any place to be closed. It’s so hard to see.”

‘Stressed all the time’

Hardware stores are considered an “essential” to remain open, and places such as East Sac Hardware have also proven to be much more. It’s a family operation for this clan — since “February 28, 1984,” Johnston says with emphasis and raised eyebrows — and it serves those who consider this spot essential to their everyday lives.

Johnston has 10 employees. She has cut none of their hours. She has laid off no one. Business isn’t booming, but it is steady as people of all ages filed in even during Saturday’s steady rain, to build a back fence, to paint a bedroom, to repair this or that, or to talk family, life and tools with the Hardware Lady.

Stressed? You bet she is. It’s clear in her expressions and words.

“Stressed all the time,” she said. “It’s a nightmare what’s happening and I have nightmares during the day and at night. I’m stressed for our country, for our community. A lot of people are hurting, a lot are sick. I’m not scared of getting sick, and I’m more scared of the total economy tanking. We’re doing the best we can. I didn’t cut back our hours or staffing during the recession (in 2008) and I’m not doing it now. You have to be a fighter, and we’re fighters, and we’re going to remain a place that people can rely on and trust.”

She added, “I tell the truth. Sometimes, my mouth works faster than my brain, but I speak my mind. I don’t like how selfish people have become, this hoarding for toilet paper. Even here, I wish people would dial it back a bit. We sell hand sanitizer, one per person, and a guy got in my face the other the other day and demanded eight. He got one. I wish people would stop thinking of themselves.”

How protective is Hardware Lady of her store and products? Well, for starters she said her fiery nature is rooted in being “98.6-percent Irish.”

She added, “We chase thieves here because this is ours, and if someone came into my house and took something, I’d chase him down the block with a bat, too,” Johnston said, this time without laughter.

Just then, a longtime customer asked Johnston, “How are you?” She responded, “Hangin’ in there, hon. We’ll all be fine.”

Around the corner, Jared Barr sought out plumbing supplies to fix a fussy faucet. He’s been a regular to this spot for years.

“It’s an institution,” said Barr, who works for the state department. “I always come here first. Especially now, we all need to shop local.”

Three aisles over, Jennifer Opie collected two boxes of puzzles. So, yes, East Sac Hardware has it all (check out the candy selection, the popcorn and the stretchy, sticky items for kids of all ages). Opie is a mother of four, ages 7 through 12, and sheltering in place requires new things to keep brains active. Puzzles it is.

“I’ve come here for 20 years, and I’m happy to come here because they always have what we need,” Opie said.

Staying positive

Johnston’s fighting spirit soothed when she stepped outside. She pointed to the mural on the side of the building bearing life-size illustrations of a family doing its hardware thing. The old blue pickup in the mural is driven by Johnston’s husband, Rich. The giddy gal with a flowing blue scarf in the pink convertible with hardware products in the back? Yes, of course: Hardware Lady in her element.

“That’s my dream car, and at least I can have it in that mural,” Johnston said with a laugh.

The boy on the bike with the American flag in the mural is Rick Johnston, son of Sheree and Rich. Rick on Saturday was manning the paint station in the store. He’s worked every inch of the place since he was 13. He’s 30 now.

“Rick was here before he was born,” Johnston said.

Say again, Hardware Lady?

“I went into labor on the front counter with Rick,” Johnston said, smiling. “At 4 days old, he was sitting on that counter.”

Rick said he admires his mother’s blunt approach to life and business. This is someone you’d want on your side in a debate or, heavens, a back-alley fracas.

“If you’re going to be in small business in California, you’ve got to be that tough and firm, and she is,” said Rick Johnston, whose sister Jo also works here. “We’re glad to see people coming in. People are nervous about the coronavirus and we try to keep it as normal and positive as we can here. But if we get sick or if we take a hit at work, the community will feel it. We’re a community-driven store. We need them and they need us.”

This story was originally published March 29, 2020 at 5:00 AM.