About Capital Belt & Supply Inc

By Chris Moon

The Capital-Journal

If you are going to survive as a small business in a market increasingly crowded with large chain stores, you have to know both your customers and your products. At least that has been Gary Hamon's philosophy for the past eight years as owner of Capital Belt & Supply, 1718 S. Kansas Ave. The company, which has been in operation for at least 55 years, sells all types of industrial belts - from those used in lawnmowers and edgers to those used in air handlers in some of the largest buildings in downtown Topeka.

Hamon said business has been on the rise since he purchased the company in 1993, even though "more competitors are moving in and a lot of good customers are going out, just shutting down." Hamon's secret is knowing what he is selling.

Not a few times have customers come in with torn up lawn mower belts needing to be replaced, he said. Sometimes the customers know exactly what they need. Other times they don't. "We've only been stumped a few times," Hamon said as he stood at the front counter of Capital Belt & Supply. Behind him, belts of all sizes lined the walls of the 3,000-square-foot business. A bit of chalk, Hamon said, sometimes helps bring out serial numbers stamped on old belts. Other times, you just have to know what you are looking at, he said.

"We like to think that's the trick," Hamon said. "People come in here when they've been someplace else, and they'll tell us about the blank look on the clerk's face when they told them what they needed. In today's economy, you have to put in the time to help your customers."

Hamon operates the business with his wife, Harriett, and sons Troy, 34, and Travis, 29. "This is a typical mom-and-pop operation," he said. Hamon, 59, purchased Capital Belt & Supply from Wally and Doris Wullschleger, who were among a string of owners who brought the business along from its early days in the 1940s. It was known then as Capital Electric and dealt with all types of electric motors and did various electrical maintenance work. The company sold belts as well. Hamon has since added a hose line section to the business, evidence of his 20 years in that industry.

He grew up in Effingham and graduated in 1967 with a political science degree from Washburn University. He taught history for a couple of years at Jardine Junior High School before a part-time job at Topeka Rubber Supply turned into a full-time occupation. When he decided to go into business on his own, he didn't shy from the stiff competition posed by large chain stores. He often tells his sons that when the dinosaurs died off, the small mammals thrived.

"I guess we can be considered the small mammals," Hamon said. "When the Enrons and Microsofts have come and gone, small businesses will pick up and provide where they once did." His philosophy appears to be rubbing off.

"There's a lot of places that sell belts and sell hoses," Troy Hamon said. "But customer service is the one thing that sets us apart. Customers know us by name and we know them by name. I like that."