New Minteer’s Market owners plan to add a bit of the general store

February 11, 2017

Michael Bradwell
Observer Reporter

The new owners of Minteer’s Market are planning some tweaks to the longtime store on Main Street before opening in the next few weeks.

Ryan Yoest, who along with several other family members own and operate Yoest Feed & Farm Supply at 2465 E. Finley Drive, said the family recently purchased Minteer’s, which has been closed since mid-January.

“We’re renovating the whole place,” Yoest said last week. “It’s almost down to the walls.”

He said that the new incarnation of the store will retain some of the market and deli items that were previously offered, “but it will also be more of a general store. There will be a little bit of the feed store mixed in,” he said of certain items the Yoests will introduce from their feed and farm supply, which is nearby.

“I’d like to open by next week, but it will probably be three to four weeks,” he said, explaining that state licenses for the lottery and tobacco products must be transferred to the new ownership, a process that takes some time.

The store on Main Street, a fixture in Claysville for generations, closed Jan. 14. It was previously owned by Deana and Duffy (Wes) Parry, who purchased it in November 2013.

The Parrys said last year’s downturn in the oil and gas industry, the state’s increase in tobacco tax and the opening of a Dollar General store just outside of town were among the factors that influenced their decision to sell.

Yoest acknowledged that having a dollar store near town could have a negative impact on retail in the town.

“Since Dollar General moved in, it hurt the grocery” portion of the business, he said.

He added that his family plans to offset that competition by offering things at Minteer’s that won’t be available elsewhere.

“We plan to get in gardening (supplies) in a big way,” he said, adding that other items from the feed and supply store will also be made available at the Claysville store.

And while bringing more of a general store atmosphere to Minteer’s may seem a bit retro, it could be the move that differentiates the store from other types of retail in the area.

“As time goes on, you have to adapt,” he said.