Identify This Antique Tool
Watch as Doug Gillis, owner of Skyway Tool Center in Chico, CA and SkywayTools.com, talks about an unusual tool that was brought in to the store recently. Its driving him crazy, because nobody in the area seems to have a clue about this tool, where it was made and what it does. It has no markings on it and has everyone here stumped. Do you know what it is? If so, email and let us know!
We found the answer. It is an antique carpet stretcher and it took us over a month to figure out.
Chain Hoists and Come-a-Longs
Doug Gillis of Skyway Tool Center in Chico, CA poses for a photo with the new stock of American Power Pull chain hoists and come-a-longs that came in this week. American Power Pull makes really sturdy chain hoists and come-a-longs, tools that are used quite a bit in this rural and agricultural community in Northern California. Ranchers and farmers need to have sturdy tools that are going to last and they can’t afford the cost in down time to have cheap, shoddy chain hoists and come-a-longs on their trucks. You get stuck out in a field trying to work on a harvester or grain feeder and you simply cannot afford to waste hours of time having to drive back to town and get the tool you should have bought in the first place, so our ag buyers always get the best.
The buyer at Skyway Tool Center ordered these at the end of September and had been waiting anxiously to get these into stock for the winter months. Farmers and ranchers tend to come in to the store over the winter because that is when they have the time to assess what they will need for the upcoming planting season. Time is money in the ag business, so those with years of experience in ag tend to pre-plan their buying. Thats why Skyway Tool Center owner Doug Gillis says that he usually only sees the farmers and ranchers during the harvest season when something goes haywire. Gillis also says he is delighted to be of service to the farm community in the North Valley area of Northern California, because they are honest, decent, and down-to-earth customers and he considers himself lucky to get to work in a field in which he gets to be of service to them.
Organizing the Tools in Your Shop or Work Bench
SkywayTools.com owner Doug Gillis also has a brick and mortar store in Chico, CA that has been selling tools since 1986, so he has a lot of experience in choosing tools that are going to last. He has picked over the many tools out on the tool market for well over 25 years and prides himself on being able to recognize quality when he sees it, so he was really impressed when he discovered the Ernst line of socket rails, wrench holders and tool trays to stock in his store.
Made in the USA, this line of tool shop organizers are built by Americans to last for years to come in a car repair shop, construction project, or home work bench out in the garage. Ernst Manufacturing was founded by Greg Ernst in 1981. If you are interested in seeing the line of Ernst organizers you can visit SkywayTools.com online automotive tool store. These organizers are an excellent tool and Doug thinks they are really “top of the line.”
CTA Tools Goes Automotive Specialty
Last week ToolsBlog.com owner Sherry Gillis attended the Medco Tool Customer Show in Philadelphia, PA and got a chance to check out the new tools and trends presented by over 100 vendors for two days. There were lots of interesting new tools on the market and some nice sets put together with tools that are already on the market, but one of the most exciting booths at the show was CTA Tools.
CTA Tools was founded by Jack Dreyfus in 1978 as a sister company to Dreyco, Incorporated, which he had also founded and had been running since 1950. Dreyco, Inc. was the company that set up all of the KD Tools export markets during the 1960s and 1970s. When KD Tools later decided to administer all of their export tools in-house, Dreyfus began CTA Tools to compete with their brand. Current CTA Tools President Michael Borghard began working at CTA Tools in 1979 after marrying the daughter of Jack Dreyfus and has been working for the company for the past 35 years.
Originally Borghard worked as a veneer log exporter in New York and had a degree in Wood Products Engineering from attending Forestry School, but was convinced he should go to work in the tool industry by his father-in-law. Borghard’s wife did not necessarily want her husband working in the family business, but the will of the father-in-law prevailed and Borghard joined the CTA Tools team.
Gillis later interviewed Borghard about the CTA Tools business and asked him his opinion on the path his company is taking in today’s tool market and what he sees coming in tool trends today.
Q) Have you changed the direction of your inventory this last few years? If so, why?
A) Absolutely. The two big changes have been with Fluid Service Tools & Euro application tools. With Fluid Service, we came across some very unique products that have done extremely well and built a new market segment for us. European application tools came because so many of our customers kept asking us to expand our range into the category. We were selling a few specialty sockets for VW/Audi at the time. We learned there were limited choices for these types of tools, while at the same time the German & Swedish vehicle populations in North America were growing older and larger.
Q) I noticed you have some specialty tools for Mini Coopers. What made you decide to make specialty tools for that particular make of car? Do you feel there is a very big market for those tools?
A) This ties into my comments above. There were very specific requests for Mini tools and we are now in the process of adding more.
Q) Do you see any particular trends among automotive specialty tools these days?
A) The biggest trend is the explosion of range. Because of the many engineering changes throughout both domestic & import vehicles, the need for more & more specialty tools is never-ending.
Q) How has the recession effected your manufacturing company?
A) What recession? Our growth has never been better during the recent years. Cars age, are on their 2nd, 3rd or 4th owners, independent shops are hungry for business and will work on any car they can, which means more specialty tools.
Q) Do you see a change in the automotive tools industry because of the recession in general? If so, what do you think is on trend for the next few years?
A) The trend we see is with parts getting smaller, lighter and harder to get to. These material and location changes drive our business. Technology is also changing swiftly, but that effects the diagnostic side of the business, which we are not involved with.
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In looking over the new inventory displayed by CTA Tools, Gillis can see they should be making quite a splash in the automotive specialty tools industry.
Skyway Tool Center History
Skyway Tool Center is located in Chico, California and has been in business since 1986. Do you know of a family-owned tool store located in the United States? If so, we would be happy to write about it on ToolsBlog.com. In this article we will tell you about the history of the Skyway Tool Center business.
Doug Gillis and Will Dvorak had been friends for a number of years in Oroville, California. Doug worked at Pacific Coast Producers, a canning plant, and Will had been selling tools at flea markets in the area, when Will came up with an idea. He said the two friends should start a tool store in Paradise, California, because the guy who had the tool store in Paradise, known as “Starvin’ Marvin,” had retired and now there was no place to buy tools in Paradise. Doug agreed, so each of them ponied up about five thousand dollars and they rented the same spot Marvin had vacated months before and began buying tools for inventory. They began selling in December, 1986, and their customers were the contractors, mechanics and other tool users in the area.
After three weeks in business, Will approached Doug one day after work and asked him how he liked the tool business. Doug said he loved it and felt great about coming to work every day, then he asked Will how he liked it. Will said he hated being in the store and had not realized how confined he would feel being inside all day. Doug asked him what he wanted to do and Will said he didn’t want to have to come to work the next day! The two friends made an agreement and Doug bought out Will and assumed control of the business, which was originally called “Skyway Tools.”
Doug Gillis really did enjoy working in the tool store. He had always been shy and quiet, feeling uncomfortable around people he didn’t know, but in the tool store it was different, because he knew enough about the tools to help the customers. If he didn’t know the answer, he would find out. He also learned a tremendous amount from the tool customers, because there were a lot of older guys in Paradise, which was a retirement area. The longer he worked behind the counter of the store, the more he liked it and the more he liked the customers. Every day brought new people and new challenges, so it stayed interesting. The business really took hold and grew, so within two years he needed to move into a larger location.
In 1989 Gillis moved into a 2500 sq ft building directly across the street and expanded the business. He had a big party out in the parking lot with live music and had a grand opening. He built a wall across the rear portion of the store because he didn’t have that much inventory and he could use the back area for an office. A few months later he met his future wife, Sherry, and she began helping him with the books at the store. The business had really grown and it had become difficult for Doug to keep up with the billing, accounts payable and receivable and other paperwork details, so Sherry took that over and computerized the books. They decided to start selling Ryobi Power Tools and needed to make room for the new inventory, so they tore down the original wall across the rear of the store and built a small office, leaving the maximum amount of room possible for the inventory. The sales went crazy and after a few years of struggling to make ends meet, they were doing quite well by 1992. In 1993 they decided to open a second location in Chico, eventually closing the original location and putting everything under one roof. In 1995 Sherry started SkywayTools.com to sell automotive specialty tools online. As daughter, Suzanne, grew up she learned about working the store and became the bookkeeper from 2001 until 2008.
In 2003 the couple purchased property at the corner of the Skyway, a main artery in Chico, and Bruce Road, and erected a 6500 sq ft tool store that opened in 2005. Once more the Gillis Family had a grand opening and hundreds of friends, relatives and customers celebrated this expansion of the business. Since then, daughter Suzanne married and changed jobs to an outside company and the recession brought more changes to the business.
Today Skyway Tool Center is thriving by selling new and used tools, recycled containers, and selling automotive specialty tools online worldwide. Owners Doug and Sherry Gillis have spent a good deal of their lives providing the right tool solution to mechanics, contractors, farmers, hobbyists and homeowners. They love having their store and welcome the challenges in competing in this challenging market.
