Harbor Freight Confirms Store in Former Toys R Us

BOARDMAN, Ohio — Harbor Freight plans to open its third location in the Mahoning Valley in the former Toys R Us store at 317 Boardman Poland Road.

The plan was confirmed in an email from the company’s director of corporate communications, Craig Hoffman, who said the company hopes to open the store sometime mid-winter of 2022. A more exact date will be announced closer to the opening, he said.

“We’ve been looking to open a location in Boardman for some time now, but we always want to wait for a location that best meets our criteria – easy access, ample parking for our customers and the right square footage,” Hoffman said.

This will be Harbor Freight’s 48th store in Ohio and second in Mahoning County. It also has a store at 6000 Mahoning Ave. in Austintown. Another location is at 1756 North Road SE in Warren.

At 18,000 square feet, the Boardman location is smaller than a typical “big box” store, which the company believes gives it a competitive advantage, Hoffman said.

“Many of our customers are professional tradespeople, who want to be able to stop off, find exactly what they need and then go directly to their shop or job site,” he said. “This size also makes it easier for customers to browse and see our great deals.”

Harbor Freight looks to create 25 to 30 jobs at the store. Currently, the store has two positions listed at HarborFreightJobs.com/retail: Retail stocking manager and retail sales manager.

On Nov. 23, Rhino Holdings Boardman LLC, a Nevada-based developer, closed on the $2 million sale of the property. Bill Kutlick of Platz Realty Group facilitated the sale and said the nearly 47,000-square-foot building will be renovated into two storefronts with new glass doors and signage.

“It’ll be a new facade. It won’t look like the old Toys R Us,” Kutlick said.

Harbor Freight will lease its portion of the building, and a the other portion will be marketed to other retailers.

In Jan. 2019, Trilogy Realty & Development, Canfield, purchased the property for $1.5 million, according to the Mahoning County Auditor website.

Most recently, the Bin Voyage discount store was operating in the building.

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.