San Diego Hardware is one of the oldest family-owned businesses in San Diego. Founded in 1892, the original store on 5th Avenue in downtown carried traditional hardware of that era, including washboards, wood stoves, ice boxes, sporting goods, and Winchester firearms.
Late in 1892, four San Diego citizens founded a new venture which was to be called San Diego Hardware. The four founders of the company were Fred Gazlay, John M. Wood, George M. Hawley, and George T. Hawley. All four men had previous experience in the hardware business. Fred Gazlay had worked as a bookkeeper for Western Metal Supply and both Fred and John Wood had been with Hamilton Hardware for several years. George M. Hawley and George T. Hawley were with the Todd & Hawley.
The new store’s inventory is described in a San Diego Union article in January of 1893 “Besides carrying a full line of builders’ and shelf hardware, a complete new stock of gasoline and oil stoves for heating and cooking and a full line of agateware, galvanized ironware and tinware has been added “From the same article comes the philosophy of doing business that has guided the company during more than 120 years of business: “The new firm will continue to carry a large and complete stock and endeavor by courteous treatment and honorable dealing to merit their share of public patronage” Courteous, friendly service and a wide selection of hard-to-find items is a tradition at San Diego Hardware.
The 1922 Move
In 1922 the company moved closer to San Diego’s center of commerce. The company moved two blocks North on Fifth Avenue to 840 Fifth Avenue. The building had been occupied by the ”five-and-dime“ store F.W. Woolworth’s. At the grand re-opening a newspaper article reported, "Tomorrow morning, what is said to be the finest and most beautiful hardware store on the Pacific coast – the new home of the San Diego Hardware Company – will be opened for business ...”. The new store had three entrances, a fifty-foot storefront on Fifth Avenue and a 25-foot storefront on Fourth Avenue. During this time the store was known as The Winchester Store, selling Winchester firearms and sporting goods as well as a broad selection of hardware, housewares and hand tools. There was a shooting range in the basement where a sharpshooter from Winchester put on shooting demonstrations.
The 2006 Move
In March of 2006, after 114 years of business downtown, San Diego Hardware relocated to its new store in the Kearny Mesa area of San Diego. The new store provides customers with an even larger selection of decorative hardware, more parking, and convenient freeway access. The store offers an expanded 8,000 square foot multi-level showroom where shoppers can peruse the largest selection of decorative and functional hardware in San Diego, including more than 7,000 knobs, 4,000 hinges, and 1,000 different door locks. It is a veritable museum of the company’s fascinating past, retaining the time-honored San Diego Hardware identity by fusing the historical fabric of the old store with the conveniences and comforts of the 21st century.
Today
Today San Diego Hardware stands as the oldest family-owned and 10th oldest business in San Diego and continues its tradition of unmatched hardware expertise and one-on-one customer service. It is still owned and operated by the fifth generation of the founding family.
