By Dan Nienaber
TRUMAN — A teen who earned national attention two years ago by saving a small-town grocery has moved on, but the store’s shelves are still stocked and in capable hands.
“I had no intention of selling,” said Nick Graham, now a ripened and wiser 19 years old. “But I had someone approach me with an offer I couldn’t refuse and, two weeks later, I was out of it.”
That someone is Brad Gohla, owner of The Store in Elysian. He said he purchased the Truman store, as well as another grocery Graham operated in Kiester, to increase his buying power.
Gohla has operated the Elysian store with his wife, Mary Jo, since 2005. He has the same goal Graham did when he saved the former Gruis Family Grocery: provide a local source for food to residents in small towns.
Graham was only 17 years old and still in high school when he took over the Gruis store in Truman, which had been closed for two months. The young businessman’s venture drew national media attention.
“We’re trying to keep the small grocery store alive and be competitive with the Hy-Vees and the Cubs,” Gohla said. “We’ll see how it works.”
Gohla made the offer to Graham in June and the deal was closed in July. Graham landed a job as a salesman at Easy Automation in Welcome, a company that sells automated livestock feeding systems, before his stores were officially sold.
“I saw an ad in the paper and I was winding down the grocery thing, so I applied,” Graham said. “It’s hectic, but I really enjoy it. I get to travel for work.”
A couple of months ago he moved from Truman to Fairmont, where he also has taken over management of a day-care center. The center has about 80 full-time kids and 20 staff.
Graham wants to get into politics, too, but that’s at least a couple of years down the road. He attempted to run for county commissioner in Martin County this year, but he was told he couldn’t because the minimum age for the post is 21.
For now, he’s not completely sure what his 20s will bring.
“I’d like to help people and make a difference,” he said. “I want to be involved in some sort of business, whether it’s my own or some progressive business.”
And Gohla said he has plenty of challenges ahead trying to stay in business during a tough economy. As is the case with many other small-business owners, the past few months have made him concerned about the future.
Now that he’s buying supplies for three stores, he’s able to keep his costs down, he said. With weekly specials and a 10 percent discount for purchases of more than $50, his prices are comparable to the big stores, Gohla said.
But high gas prices and a tight economy tend to drive consumers to Wal-Mart, he added.
Graham said he wishes Gohla the best, and he’s sure the Truman grocery is in good hands.
“You just have to work hard and treat people right,” Graham said. “There really is no secret to it.”
