Steve and Tina Nelson are ready to retire and hand over the reins of the Nelson family businesses— Nelsons Furniture, Nelly’s Restaurant on Route 66, and Route 66 Old School Brewing — to the fourth generation of Nelsons, son Ryan and his wife, Annie.
If there’s an entrepreneurial gene, the Nelsons have it.
Steve Nelson told of how his grandfather, Wayne Nelson, opened his first business in Wilmington in 1937, selling chicks and eggs, which then turned to Maytag washers and Zenith TVs, LP gas, and carpeting, Sherwin Williams paint, and a grocery store, Royal Blue.
“As I’ve gotten older, I’ve appreciated it more and more,” Steve Nelson said of his family’s legacy and prolific footprint in Wilmington.
“I have old pictures where it was probably early 1940s. He’s in an old building in downtown Wilmington and they had these old gas heaters in the building. And from there, he was selling more things and buying up buildings in downtown Wilmington. I think he owned six buildings at one time. He just kind of kept expanding,” Nelson said.
After the grocery store was damaged in a fire, Wayne Nelson opened Nelsons Furniture in 1967. His son, Ken, joined the family business shortly thereafter after a brief teaching career.
“My grandfather worked there until the day he died. My Grandma Nelson died when she was 95, and she was still coming in four to five days a week, but she enjoyed it. It’s what they liked to do. They were from that generation that’s just the way it was. My dad did basically the same thing even though he retired,” Steve Nelson told of his family’s dedication to the business.
Wayne Nelson wasn’t the only prolific business owner in Wilmington in the family. Ken did, too, purchasing several buildings in Wilmington, including the Braun Sales building. They continued to expand, buying more properties. It didn’t stop there — Steve also carried on that tradition.
With Steve and his wife Tina taking over the furniture store in 1995 after Nelson’s dad, Ken, retired, they added Nelly’s Restaurant and Route 66 Old School Brewing to their portfolio.
“One of the reasons we did that is as things go bad, maybe if furniture is down, the food industry will be better. They all kind of feed one another, and it was another way to diversify a little bit,” Steve explained, noting that diversification was an important skill he had learned from his parents and grandparents.
“It’s like anything else. You have ups and downs, and especially in 2007, 2008 and 2009 when we had the huge crash with real estate just completely imploding around the country, it took out so many businesses at that time. It was really bad— it almost took us out, too,” Steve said of his time running his businesses.
As he and his wife Tina approached 65, the idea of retirement became more attractive, especially after some close friends died, which made them take stock of how they spent their time.
“It’s time to get out of there and do it while we’re still in good shape and able to do fun things,” Steve said.
They both want to spend more time with their grandkids. Steve, an avid coach from when his kids were young, looks forward to having more time to dedicate to helping the youth hone their skills. He’s already got an inbox full of opportunities to help kids in town.
“It’s one of those things you look back on, and it’s something you did right. Those kids recognize it. I see all those kids we’ve coached for 15 years. The furniture store is something I did my whole life, but I’m way more proud of coaching. It’s very rewarding to be able to do that. I enjoy it more than anything else I’ve ever done,” Steve Nelson said.
Once they knew they wanted to retire, they mulled over the idea of selling the businesses outright, but they couldn’t pull the trigger. They will still be living and active in the community, and they wanted to see the businesses continue and succeed in the way they had under the Nelson family’s ownership. They also thought of their employees, noting that even if a buyer said they’d keep it the same, there wouldn’t be any guarantees.
With generational family businesses a rarity —and third and fourth successfully running a business almost unheard of— they knew they had something special.
When their son and daughter-in-law came to them and said they were interested and capable, the decision came easy. And so, over the past few years, they’ve been working to share the recipe of success, teaching and guiding, and leaving them to run the store for longer periods of time.
The recipe isn’t new — it stems from resilience and planning.
“It’s always been a rollercoaster ride. The ups and downs with the economy, good and bad, and you kind of have to roll through them. One thing I learned through my grandparents who lived through the Great Depression: save your money, don’t overspend on things, even though it’s really good right now, it might not be in 10 years from now, so you have to plan ahead,” Steve Nelson shared.
Ryan will continue to work his job in construction but will help with operations outside of that. It seems implausible— it’s not — Steve did the same. Ryan’s wife Annie, has already taken on an integral role in operations at the store and will continue to do so.
“She really liked it and is very good at it. She runs the social media, and with the brewery, she always has something going on,” Steve said, complimenting his daughter-in-law.
“The Nelson’s family has poured generations of hard work into these businesses, and I’m honored to carry that legacy forward while also bringing fresh ideas to keep them thriving,” Annie Nelson said.
“We want to keep these businesses going for years to come—not just for our customers, but for our family, as well. Our daughters are still young, but we hope these businesses will be around long enough to give them their first jobs, just like so many local families have had the opportunity to work with us over the years.”
“There’s so much potential, and I’m excited for what’s ahead,” Annie Nelson added.
Stephanie Irvine is a freelance reporter.
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