Rural King store to open in Harrisburg
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Shoppers in the region will soon have a new destination, complete with free popcorn and coffee.
Rural King is opening a new store in the old Wal-Mart building at the Arrowhead Point Shopping Center. The store is expected to open about the first week of November, according to Tim Lodes, director of human resources for Rural King.
"We haven't nailed that down yet. That depends upon product flow and getting the building ready," Lodes said.
Many area residents are probably already familiar with Rural King from shopping at the Marion store. The store carries a variety of items, such as domestics, clothing, tools, toys, lawn and garden, outdoor, auto parts and agricultural equipment. The Rural King Internet site recently advertised deals on a tree stand, snowman bird-feeder and buck decoy.
The Harrisburg location will be the 47th store in seven states for the Mattoon-based company, which opened its first store in 1960. Rural King will be a relatively big employer in the Saline County area, which will provide a good shot in the arm to a region always hungry for jobs.
"We estimate approximately 55 to 65 employees, with approximately 15 to 20 being full-time," Lodes said.
Rural King has been negotiating with Wal-Mart's real estate division for quite some time on acquiring the Arrowhead Point location.
"We have really looked at Harrisburg for the last year and a half," Lodes said.
The company is looking forward to becoming an established part of the local economy. Rural King had planned to open several stores this year, but the economic downturn dashed some of the expansion plans - a common situation for companies. Lodes said Home Depot forecast opening 100 stores in 2010; instead they have opened one.
"We're fortunate that we're still in a position to open stores," Lodes said.
Of course, Rural King would not be the same without free popcorn and coffee for customers.
"We encourage pet owners to bring their pets, on a leash, into the store," Lodes said.