GUSTINE — Coast Hardware is marking 50 years in business, a milestone for a store that has become a dependable stop for generations of Gustine residents looking for parts, tools, project advice or help solving everyday problems at home.
The business opened in 1976, when Frank and Kristie Streifel moved to Gustine from Southern California with little more than what they could fit in their car. They launched the hardware store on Fourth Street and spent years building both the business and their life in town.
“My parents, Frank and Kristie Streifel, opened the store back in 1976,” their daughter, Ali Endert, said. “They moved up from Southern California with nothing but what they could pack in their car and started a new business and built their life in Gustine.”
The early years weren’t easy. Ali said her parents were told they wouldn’t succeed because they weren’t located on Main Street. A decade later, the family expanded and moved Coast Hardware to its current location, where it has remained a fixture ever since.
In 2019, Ali and her husband, Jason Endert, took over operations as Frank and Kristie prepared to step back. For the couple, continuing the business has meant preserving a piece of Gustine’s history and keeping a place where customers can still walk in and receive personal help.
“We wanted to make sure the store continued to provide a place for the community to shop and keep business local,” Ali said.
The store’s connection to its customers is one of the things Ali values most. Many longtime customers first came in as children buying bike parts and now have accounts of their own.
“It’s been a privilege serving this community that I’ve grown up with,” she said. “Today, we have customers who used to come in and buy parts for their bikes as kids. Now they have accounts with us.”
That personal service has been part of Coast Hardware’s identity since the beginning. Ali said her parents built the business around being helpful and making sure anyone could get the support they needed, no matter the size of the project.
“My parents built the business on being helpful, and that carries through to today,” she said.
Even as big-box stores and online shopping have changed how people buy supplies, Ali and Jason said there is still something important about having a local hardware store that knows its customers and can help solve problems face-to-face.
“Big box stores might try, but they can’t replicate the know‑how and personal service that we are known for,” Ali said.
The internet has also brought new challenges — and opportunities. Customers sometimes arrive with online orders that are missing parts or don’t work as expected. Others come in with ideas they’ve seen on TikTok or YouTube and need help turning them into real projects.
“We see people come in with creative ideas from TikTok or YouTube, and we work with them to bring their vision to life,” Jason said.
As Coast Hardware celebrates its 50th year, Ali and Jason said the milestone is a reminder of the role small businesses play in towns like Gustine — places where people ask questions, get advice, share stories and support families who have invested decades into the community.
“Thank you for your patronage,” the couple said. “We look forward to another 50‑plus years with you.”
From its early days on Fourth Street to its long‑established home today, Coast Hardware’s story is one built on family, service and trust — and it continues to show that local knowledge and a helpful hand still matter in Gustine.
