Tractor Supply opening two Syracuse-area stores

CNY Business Journal (1996+), Apr 29, 2005 by Tampone, Kevin

SYRACUSE - Tractor Supply Company (NASDAQ: TSCO), a national chain of' retail farm and ranch stores with 2004 sales of more than $1.7 billion, is opening two new locations in Onondaga County.

Construction of the stores, which will he located in East Syracuse and Clay, will begin within the next two months. Susan Morgenstern, a spokeswoman for TSCO, says she is not sure of the exact addresses, but says the buildings will be new construction - not renovated, existing structures.

The company already, has 17 stores in New York State, including nine in Central New York Norwich, Fulton, Horseheads, Cortland, Auburn, Oneida, Oswego, Vestal, and Watertown. But these will be its first two stores in Onondaga County.

The stores in East Syracuse and Clay will both be about 22,500 square feet and employ 12 to 15 people each. They will be open by November.

All stores are company-owned. They are not franchises, Morgenstern says.

The company constantly looks for new markets where its stores can succeed and the Syracuse area fits that bill, Morgenstern says. Many TSCO stores are in the suburbs or more rural, outlying areas of cities like Syracuse, according to the company.

By the end of 2004, the company had identified red more than 800 potential new markets, according to its 2004 annual report.

"There's a lot of research that goes into new markets," Morgenstern says. "The company is pretty focused on the customer and knowing who the customer is."

The company does not consider itself a home-improvement chain like Home Depot or Lowe's, Morgenstern says. The stores focus on supplying the lifestyle needs of recreational farmers and ranchers, serving the maintenance needs' of those who live and enjoy a rural lifestyle, and supplying small agricultural businesses, according to the company.

Two features that separate TSCO stores from traditional homeimprovement retailers are their animal-supply and clothing sections, Morgenstern says. Anyone with a few dogs or cats or even a few horses or goats will find a wide range of supplies from feed to riding tack to fencing, she says.

The clothing the stores carry is geared for outdoor work in all seasons, Morgenstern says.

"You won't find those things at a Home Depot or a Lowe's," she says. "Tractor Supply is kind of built around the kind of person who has some land and has some animals, and really wants to take care of things [himself]. Anyone who regularly does work outside or who really likes to take care of their own place will find something there,"

TSCO stores also carry hardware, tools, lawn equipment, power garden equipment, and truck, trailer, and towing products.

In 2004, the average TSCO store had sales of about $3.5 million. By the end of last year, there were 515 stores in 32 states, according to the company's 2004 annual report.

For the past three years, the largest chunk of the company's sales about 30 percent - has come from its pet and animal products. The next largest segment about 23 percent - comes from seasonal items such as lawn products.

TSCO plans to open 60 to 65 total new stores this year and 70 to 76 in 2006. Texas had the highest number of stores in 2004 with 70, according to the company.

Tractor Supply's remaining New York stores are in Amenia, Amsterdam, Arcade, Batavia, Brockport, Canandaigua, Chester, Cobleskill, Dunkirk, Geneseo, Highland, Lakewood, Liberty, Lockport, Oneonta, Queensbury, Saratoga Springs, and Wellsville.