Harbor Freight Tools holds grand opening of south KC store on Saturday

By Brad Ziegler

Harbor Freight Tools recently added an eighth area location for its retail tools and equipment business, opening a store at 1210 West 136th Street in South Kansas City. It marks the second location in Jackson County and the 35th in Missouri. 

The new store will hold its official grand opening on Saturday, January 13 at 8 a.m. 

“It will be much more convenient for our customers in the community, as currently, they have to travel about 7 miles to our Belton location or 10 miles (and out of state) to our Olathe store in Kansas,” says Craig Hoffman, spokesperson for Harbor Freight. The nearest store in Jackson County is 25 miles to the north.  

“We’ve been looking to open another location in Jackson County, and specifically in South Kansas City for a while now,” he says. “But we always believe in waiting until we find a location that meets our needs and the needs of our customers.

Harbor Freight occupies a 15,000 square feet space in the State Line Station shopping center across from Target that was formerly occupied by Petco. The location offers good visibility, easy access, and ample parking. The space runs smaller than most of their big box facilities. But Hoffman says that’s a competitive advantage. 

“Many of our customers are professional trades workers who want to stop in, find what they need and then head out quickly to their job site or workshop,” he says. “For other customers, this size makes it easier to browse and find our great deals.”

Harbor Freight offers more than 7000 different tools, accessories and equipment items that can be purchased in-store or online and picked up at their new location.  

“All our customers will find a full selection of quality tools and accessories in categories including automotive, air and power tools, storage, outdoor power equipment, generators, welding supplies, shop equipment, hand tools and more, at lowest prices, which has been our mission since we began more than 45 years ago,” says Hoffman.

Harbor Freight started out in California 1977 as a mail order tool business that sold liquidated and returned merchandise and they opened their first retail store in Lexington, Kentucky in 1980.  It has branded itself as “the go to store for quality tools at the lowest prices.”

They offer “Inside Track Club” memberships that give members exclusive deals and early access to sales and new products at their locations.

 The store is currently hiring sales and inventory management staff.  Named one of the nation’s fastest growing retailers by the National Retail Federation in 2023, Harbor Freight was also ranked in the top twenty best retail employers for women by Forbes for the same period.  Manager Keith Lyons, formerly with the Belton store has been busy training new local employees at the south Kansas City operation.

Harbor Freight will be open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.

The other locations besides the Belton store are in Shawnee, Olathe, Lee’s Summit, Independence, and NW Barry Rd.