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Strasser Hardware is a 109-year-old independent hardware store at 910 Southwest Boulevard in the Rosedale neighborhood of Kansas City, Kansas. A.L. Strasser and his cousin Alfred opened it in 1917 as Rosedale Plumbing and Electrical, a contracting firm; the pair found they were selling more nails and screws to other contractors than they were using, and by 1921 A.L. had bought out his cousin, dropped contracting, and converted the shop to a sales floor. Renamed A.L. Strasser Hardware Co. in 1926 and moved that year to 910 Southwest Blvd, where it still trades, having expanded five times across a century. Joined the True Value cooperative in 1964. Four generations of the family have run it; the presidency passed to a long-serving employee in 2012.

Description

Strasser Hardware is an independent hardware, tool, and building-supply store at 910 Southwest Boulevard in the Rosedale neighborhood of Kansas City, Kansas. It has traded from that address since 1926 and has been in business since 1917, making it one of the longest-running retail businesses in Wyandotte County.

It did not begin as a store. In 1917 A.L. Strasser and his cousin Alfred opened Rosedale Plumbing and Electrical, a contracting firm employing several plumbers and electricians; A.L.’s ten-year-old son Harold helped out. The pair bought kegs of nails and screws to mount electrical insulators and found they were selling a great many of them on to other contractors. In 1921 A.L. bought Alfred out, discontinued contracting altogether, and converted the shop and office space to a sales floor. The name changed to A.L. Strasser Hardware Co. in 1926 — the same year Harold graduated from high school, became his father’s partner, and the two moved the store to 910 Southwest Boulevard.1

The store grew by accretion rather than relocation. A sheet-metal warehouse of 6,500 square feet and 4,500 square feet of additional sales floor went up in 1940; 11,000 square feet followed in 1954, 12,400 in 1967, another 12,400 in 1987, and 10,000 more in 2008. In 1964 Strasser joined the True Value cooperative — a member-owned buying group, not a franchise — and began trading as Strasser True Value Hardware. By its eightieth anniversary in 1997 it carried more than 100,000 items and drew customers from beyond a hundred-mile radius.1

Four generations of the family have worked the floor. A.L. Strasser ran the business until his death in 1956, when Harold became president and Harold’s son Louis “Lou” Strasser — who had started sweeping floors at nine in 1943 — became vice president. Lou took over daily operations and the presidency in 1987; Harold stepped back to vice president and lived to 100, dying in 2008. John Van Hengel, the fourth generation, came in as floor manager in 1994 and is now vice president. In 2012 Lou Strasser retired and Leroy Andrews — hired in 1972 as purchasing manager, general manager from 1994, vice president from 2008 — became president, the first non-family member to hold the office. That year True Value recognised the store as “The Best Hardware Store In Town.”1

The store’s own statement of purpose, published on its history page, is that “the goal was never to be the biggest, it will always be to have the best service and the most knowledgeable staff possible.”1

Goods and services

  • Hardware and fasteners — nuts, bolts, screws, and nails sold loose and by the box, including uncommon and discontinued sizes; the depth of this bin stock is the store’s long-standing local reputation.2
  • Tools — power and hand tools; authorised brands include DeWalt, Milwaukee, Bosch, Stanley, FatMax, Black & Decker, Bostitch, and Irwin.3
  • Paint — EasyCare paint line.3
  • Lumber and building materials.32
  • Electrical and plumbing supply — the trade the business was founded in.32
  • Outdoor power equipment — STIHL as an authorised dealer; Traeger pellet grills and Weber grills.34
  • Ladders and water heaters — Louisville Ladder; Reliance water heaters.3
  • Janitorial and lubricants — Zep and related lines.3
  • Commercial and industrial supply — a dedicated commercial sales desk and business account applications, alongside retail; the website trades under the name “Strasser Hardware Commercial Industrial Supply.”35
  • Online storefront — a first-party e-commerce catalogue at strasser-hardware.com with customer accounts.3
  • U-Haul — the store operates as a U-Haul neighborhood dealer for truck and trailer rental.3
  • True Value Rewards — the co-op’s loyalty program.3

History

YearEventSource
1917A.L. Strasser and his cousin Alfred open Rosedale Plumbing and Electrical, a plumbing and electrical contracting firm. A.L.’s son Harold, aged 10, assists. The firm buys kegs of nails and screws for mounting insulators and finds it is reselling much of that stock to other contractors.1
1921A.L. buys out Alfred, ends contracting work, converts shop and office space to a hardware sales floor.1
1926Renamed A.L. Strasser Hardware Co. Harold graduates high school and becomes his father’s partner; the store moves to 910 Southwest Boulevard, its present address.1
1940Adds a 6,500 sq ft sheet-metal warehouse and 4,500 sq ft of sales floor.1
1943Louis “Lou” Strasser, aged 9, son of Harold, begins helping in the store.1
1954Expands by a further 11,000 sq ft.1
1956Founder A.L. Strasser dies. Harold Strasser (2nd generation) becomes president; Lou Strasser (3rd generation) becomes vice president.1
1964Joins the True Value cooperative; trades as Strasser True Value Hardware.1
1967Expands by 12,400 sq ft.1
1972Leroy Andrews hired as purchasing manager.1
1987Lou Strasser becomes president and takes over daily operations; Harold becomes vice president. Store adds a further 12,400 sq ft of sales space.1
199275th anniversary.1
1994Leroy Andrews becomes general manager. John Van Hengel (4th generation) becomes floor manager.1
199780th anniversary; Harold Strasser turns 90. Inventory exceeds 100,000 items; customer reach beyond 100 miles.1
2008Harold Strasser dies aged 100. Leroy Andrews becomes vice president. Store adds 10,000 sq ft.1
2012Lou Strasser retires; Leroy Andrews becomes president and John Van Hengel vice president. True Value names the store “The Best Hardware Store In Town.”1
2026Operating at 910 Southwest Blvd; first-party site and online storefront live, True Value store listing active, STIHL dealer microsite active.324

Sources

Footnotes

  1. Strasser Hardware — official history page, “A.L. Strasser Hardware Co. Over the Years” — asserts: every dated entry in the History table above, verbatim from the company’s own timeline: 1917 founding as Rosedale Plumbing and Electrical by A.L. Strasser and cousin Alfred; Harold Strasser assisting at age 10; nail and screw kegs resold to other contractors; 1921 buyout of Alfred and conversion to hardware retail; 1926 renaming to A.L. Strasser Hardware Co., Harold’s high-school graduation and partnership, and the move to 910 Southwest Boulevard “where it resides today”; 1940, 1954, 1967, 1987 and 2008 square-footage expansions; 1943 Lou Strasser starting at 9; 1956 death of A.L. Strasser and succession of Harold and Lou; 1964 True Value cooperative membership and the Strasser True Value Hardware name; 1972 hiring of Leroy Andrews; 1987 Lou Strasser’s presidency; 1992 75th and 1997 80th anniversaries; 1997 inventory of over 100,000 items and 100-mile customer reach; 2008 death of Harold Strasser at 100 and Andrews’ vice presidency; 2012 retirement of Lou Strasser, Andrews’ presidency, Van Hengel’s vice presidency, and the True Value “Best Hardware Store In Town” recognition; and the “the goal was never to be the biggest” statement. (Accessed 2026-08-13.) Caveat: the timeline ends at 2012 and the page footer carries a 2012 copyright, so leadership entries after that year are not confirmed by this source alone. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14 ↩15 ↩16 ↩17 ↩18 ↩19 ↩20

  2. True Value — official cooperative store locator listing, “Strasser Hardware True Value,” store 16804 — asserts: the store is a current, listed True Value member location in Kansas City, Kansas; department listing covering building materials and lumber, electrical, hardware and fasteners, lawn and garden, tools and accessories, and cleaning supplies. Live listing supports current operation. (Accessed 2026-08-13.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  3. Strasser Hardware — official site — asserts: 910 Southwest Blvd, Kansas City, KS 66103; phone 913.236.5858; hours Mon–Fri 7 a.m.–7 p.m., Sat–Sun 8 a.m.–5 p.m.; site title “Strasser Hardware Commercial Industrial Supply”; departments and authorised brands (DeWalt, Black & Decker, Bostitch, Irwin, Stanley, FatMax, STIHL, EasyCare Paint, Louisville Ladder, Bosch, Milwaukee Tool, Reliance water heaters, Traeger, Zep, Weber); power tools, paint, ladders, outdoor power equipment, water heaters, janitorial, lumber; live first-party online storefront with customer accounts; True Value Rewards link; Facebook at facebook.com/StrasserHardware; U-Haul neighborhood dealer link to the 66103 location. (Accessed 2026-08-13.) ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  4. STIHL — authorised dealer microsite for Strasser Hardware Inc., Kansas City, KS 66103 — asserts: Strasser Hardware Inc. is a listed authorised STIHL dealer at the 66103 address. Manufacturer-maintained; supports current operation and the outdoor-power-equipment line. (Located 2026-08-13; the page was slow to respond and its body text was not transcribed — the assertion here is limited to the existence and address of the dealer listing.) ↩ ↩2

  5. Strasser Hardware — official contacts page — asserts: Leroy Andrews, President (gm@strasserkc.com); John Van Hengel, Vice President (jvh@strasserkc.com); Peggy Bryant, Accounts Payable / Accounts Receivable / Human Resources; Bill Fuller, Commercial Sales (commercial@strasserkc.com); business account and employment applications; store address, phone, and hours as in the Infobox. (Accessed 2026-08-13.) ↩

See also

Categories

On the record — ks.city/registry/strasser-hardware · record updated 2026-08-13