Staff writer
A 36-year-old priest is taking a leap of faith as he plans to combine two family businesses under one roof in downtown Hillsboro.
Father Isaac Farha of Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Christian Church in Hillsboro will manage Farha’s Carpet and Building Supply when it opens later this fall on the southeast corner of 1st and Main Sts.
A satellite location for a Wichita-based business owned by his father and two aunts, where Farha works now, Farha said the Hillsboro site would offer customers a unique blend of products and services.
“The emphasis will be on cabinets and surplus items but there will carpet, tile, and other flooring available,” Farha said.
Building supplies alone were not enough for Farha who also plans to add books to his inventory.
“It will also be a satellite extension for ‘Eighth Day Books.’”
An uncle owns Eighth Day Books. It was Farha’s idea to combine them under one roof in Hillsboro.
With a wife and four kids, Farha said a daily commute to Wichita and back figured into his desire to start a new location.
“I live here, my family is all here, and I’m a priest here,” Farha said. “In Wichita, we get people from all over the place from as far as Concordia to Hutchinson, Newton, Peabody Marion, and familiar faces from Hillsboro.
“The whole thing is that Hillsboro sits in the middle of an audience of a half-million people. It is a good central location, and it’s a risk but we’re going for it.”
Farha said customers should expect good quality products.
“We focus on finding special buys and surplus-type items and offering them to the public at a lower price than what you would find at a big box store,” Farha said. “We offer a line of quality finished and unfinished cabinets that are not surplus items.”
Free measurements and design will be offered with cabinets so people can see hoe their kitchen, bathroom, or office cabinets would look when they go in, he said. They also can arrange for instillation on purchases if needed.
“There is a good chance the book store satellite will go in, too,” Farha said. “It will offer an eclectic selection of books pointing to a certain larger truth. It would classical and historical books, and fairly religious Christian literature.”
He plans also to offer free coffee.
“At the Wichita location there is a table with free coffee for customers, but I also plan on making it available for college students,” Farha said. “That’s where I start dreaming about the idea of adding a coffee shop. Bookstores and coffee shops go hand in hand.”
However, at first the coffee area will be for customers of Farha’s Carpet and Building Supply or the bookstore.
The building is undergoing a remodeling right now. New windows have gone in, 2X4 walls are going up, and a new roof is also in the plans, Bringing in and setting up inventory still has to happen before the business opens.
“It’s just a matter of things coming to completion,” Farha said. “I’d like to see it open by November. Hopefully it will be sooner.”