Concrete Geese, Other Figures are Taking Flight
May 6, 2016
By: Jon Chavez, Toledo Blade
May 6, 2016
Come Sunday, the old gray goose will have flown the coop permanently.
Bombrys Ornamental Concrete Inc., a Toledo mom-and-pop business that for 60 years made and sold concrete fountains, birdbaths, gargoyles, angels, religious statues, and yes, the ever-popular concrete goose, is going out of business on Saturday.
Its owner, John Bombrys, is retiring and liquidating the business. Most of his inventory of ornamental concrete objects have been purchased and what is left, along with his house and equipment, will be sold at a public auction that starts at 10 a.m. Saturday at the store, at 2316 W. Alexis Rd.
Mr. Bombrys, 68, had planned to retire either this year or in the near future, but the death of his wife, Kathleen, in December sped his timetable for closure, he said.
The couple had been married 48 years. “She was my partner in this,” he said.
Since announcing last month that Bombrys was going out of business, Mr. Bombrys said he’s been surprised and pleased at how many people have stopped to thank him, wish him well, and make purchases.
Product-wise, angels and other religious statues were the first items to go, selling out in days.
“The last two to three weeks, we’ve had old customers come in to buy that one last piece,” Mr. Bombrys said.
A typical encounter occurred Wednesday when a man, seeing the going out of business sign, stopped in to buy a gargoyle, one of just two left.
“I’ve always liked gargoyles and I’ve always wanted one,” the man explained, looking pleased to learn the item was half-priced.
Mr. Bombrys smiled as the customer left happily clutching his 20-pound winged statue.
“The customers have been amazing. They’ve come by to say good-bye or offer condolences about my wife,” Mr. Bombrys said.
A woman from Genoa came back five times to buy concrete items for her yard, he added.
U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D., Toledo) once declared Bombrys Ornamental Concrete was “the concrete goose capital of the world,” Mr. Bombrys said.
He estimated that the business has sold thousands of concrete geese over the years to people who would put them in their yards or gardens and sometimes dress them in a variety of fowl clothing. “The concrete goose was THE big thing,” he said.
But for mom-and-pop stores, the ornamental concrete business no longer provides the steady income it once did, Mr. Bombrys explained. The advent of big box stores such as Lowe’s, Home Depot, and Menard’s, which offer cheaper-priced concrete decorative items imported from China and other countries, has undercut profits of smaller private businesses, he added.
Mr. Bombrys’ father, Edwin, and his mother, Laura, started the Toledo business in the early 1950s as a supplement to a flower and gift shop they started. “My dad had a book titled, How to turn concrete into gold, ” Mr. Bombrys said.
Mr. Bombrys took over the business in 1997, two years after his father died. But Mr. Bombrys said he got his first lesson in making concrete figures when he was 8 years old. He tried to make a poodle statue and it turned out badly, he said.
But he improved and soon could make anything from angels to fountains.
He would make up to 100 items a day to build inventory for spring sales during times when the business flourished.
In the past year, some of the molds were sold to ornamental concrete firms in Michigan and Indiana.
For 60 years, Mr. Bombrys has used his skills and techniques to help decorate the yards and gardens of Toledo area residents. But after Saturday, he’ll become a full-time volunteer tasked with visiting area nursing homes to bring cheer to residents.
“Saturday is going to be an interesting day for me. Everybody has been telling me I might not want to be here, but I’m thinking of being right here,” he said looking around his shop.