- 注册
- 2002-10-07
- 消息
- 402,225
- 荣誉分数
- 76
- 声望点数
- 0
Sandro “Sam” Giannetti was known as the quiet brother, the one who presided over Little Italy’s Preston Hardware with a smile and a ready contribution for any good cause.
“He could never say ‘no’ to anyone, if a teen came for a sponsorship or a charity came calling,” said Lori Mellor, executive director of the Preston Street BIA. “He was always the big, soft heart of Preston Hardware.”
Giannetti, along with his brother Mario and best friend Mario Frangione, bought the hardware store in 1973. The trio have been fixture on Preston Street ever since. Giannetti died suddenly of a suspected aneurysm on June 22 while vacationing in his birthplace of Terracina, about an hour south of Rome.
The Giannetti family came to Ottawa when brothers Mario and Sam were children and settled on Primrose Avenue, where Fragione also lived. The boys spent every spare minute at the park, playing hockey, soccer and broomball, sometimes straggling home at 11 p.m., Mario GIannetti recalled.
“Sam and Mario were like two peas in a pod.”
Mario Giannetti had worked at the hardware store since he was 13 and was the manager when the store went up for sale. Sam was working in the auto body business at the time. The two Marios and Sam decided to buy the store. At 24, Mario Giannetti was the oldest of the three.
“We were three people who knew what we wanted to do.”
It was the start of an Ottawa business dynasty. In 1975, the partners added a second-floor plumbing showroom, which soon became the go-to place to buy European plumbing and fixtures.
“They tried a few pieces here and there. They just got more and more traction,” says Sam’s son, Johnny.
In 1983, the partners expanded into the former Consumers Distributing store next door. There was another expansion on the site in 1992, and enlargement and renovation this year.
Sandra ?’Sam’ Giannetti, one of the co-owners of Preston Hardware, died June 22, 2018. He was 67.
The original hardware store had a wine-making supply store in the basement. Home winemakers were having difficulty sourcing grapes, so the partners decided to order a tractor-trailer load from California. It sold out in an hour. The wine grapes division of the business still sells 10 to 12 truckloads of grapes a year.
Preston Hardware stuck to it roots in Little Italy and is now Canada’s largest independent hardware store, with 110 employees. Between them, the three owners have 11 children. Nine of them work in the business, said Johnny.
The family is tight-knit. Mario and Sam’s brother Fred is a manager in the store. Sam’s wife Cecilia is Mario Frangione’s cousin. She also grew up on Primrose Avenue. The couple have four children, Johnny, Roberto, Sylvia and Paolo. The three boys all work at the store. The two Marios are also brothers-in-law — Mario Giannetti married Mario Fragione’s sister, who is also named Cecilia.
“It’s joyful just being with your family every day,” said Johnny, who recalls sitting down at the coffee bar in the office every morning with his father to map out what had to be done before the end of the day.
“Being able to work together, we formed a tight bond,” he said. “We call it our home. Our staff (is) our family. At the end of the day, we spend more time here than we do at home.”
Sam may have been quiet, but he wasn’t shy, says his friend Delio D’Angelo, former owner of Frank’s Auto Centre on Norman Street.
“He wasn’t the sort of businessman who went to school. He acquired it with people. He could juggle all the parts of the business, the big orders. His office was like a war room.”
Mario Giannetti calls his brother his “right-hand man.”
“He always had a smile on his face, but whatever had to be done would be done.”
The Giannetti brothers led the renaissance of Little Italy, Mario out in front and Sam supporting him, said Mellor.
“They contributed to every project and initiative — the Little Italy arch, the festivals. They stored stuff for festivals and brought the grape-stomping equipment out with their forklift. They grew up here. This was their neighbourhood. As they became successful, they moved out the the suburbs. But they knew that this could be a vibrant community,” she said.
“A neighbourhood is made up of personalities and the people who weave it together. A strong thread has been broken in the fabric.”
Visitation will be held Tuesday at the Somerset chapel of the Kelly Funeral Home from noon to 5 p.m. and from 7 to 9 p.m. A funeral mass is to be held Wednesday at 10 a.m. at St. Anthony’s Church.
查看原文...
“He could never say ‘no’ to anyone, if a teen came for a sponsorship or a charity came calling,” said Lori Mellor, executive director of the Preston Street BIA. “He was always the big, soft heart of Preston Hardware.”
Giannetti, along with his brother Mario and best friend Mario Frangione, bought the hardware store in 1973. The trio have been fixture on Preston Street ever since. Giannetti died suddenly of a suspected aneurysm on June 22 while vacationing in his birthplace of Terracina, about an hour south of Rome.
The Giannetti family came to Ottawa when brothers Mario and Sam were children and settled on Primrose Avenue, where Fragione also lived. The boys spent every spare minute at the park, playing hockey, soccer and broomball, sometimes straggling home at 11 p.m., Mario GIannetti recalled.
“Sam and Mario were like two peas in a pod.”
Mario Giannetti had worked at the hardware store since he was 13 and was the manager when the store went up for sale. Sam was working in the auto body business at the time. The two Marios and Sam decided to buy the store. At 24, Mario Giannetti was the oldest of the three.
“We were three people who knew what we wanted to do.”
It was the start of an Ottawa business dynasty. In 1975, the partners added a second-floor plumbing showroom, which soon became the go-to place to buy European plumbing and fixtures.
“They tried a few pieces here and there. They just got more and more traction,” says Sam’s son, Johnny.
In 1983, the partners expanded into the former Consumers Distributing store next door. There was another expansion on the site in 1992, and enlargement and renovation this year.
Sandra ?’Sam’ Giannetti, one of the co-owners of Preston Hardware, died June 22, 2018. He was 67.
The original hardware store had a wine-making supply store in the basement. Home winemakers were having difficulty sourcing grapes, so the partners decided to order a tractor-trailer load from California. It sold out in an hour. The wine grapes division of the business still sells 10 to 12 truckloads of grapes a year.
Preston Hardware stuck to it roots in Little Italy and is now Canada’s largest independent hardware store, with 110 employees. Between them, the three owners have 11 children. Nine of them work in the business, said Johnny.
The family is tight-knit. Mario and Sam’s brother Fred is a manager in the store. Sam’s wife Cecilia is Mario Frangione’s cousin. She also grew up on Primrose Avenue. The couple have four children, Johnny, Roberto, Sylvia and Paolo. The three boys all work at the store. The two Marios are also brothers-in-law — Mario Giannetti married Mario Fragione’s sister, who is also named Cecilia.
“It’s joyful just being with your family every day,” said Johnny, who recalls sitting down at the coffee bar in the office every morning with his father to map out what had to be done before the end of the day.
“Being able to work together, we formed a tight bond,” he said. “We call it our home. Our staff (is) our family. At the end of the day, we spend more time here than we do at home.”
Sam may have been quiet, but he wasn’t shy, says his friend Delio D’Angelo, former owner of Frank’s Auto Centre on Norman Street.
“He wasn’t the sort of businessman who went to school. He acquired it with people. He could juggle all the parts of the business, the big orders. His office was like a war room.”
Mario Giannetti calls his brother his “right-hand man.”
“He always had a smile on his face, but whatever had to be done would be done.”
The Giannetti brothers led the renaissance of Little Italy, Mario out in front and Sam supporting him, said Mellor.
“They contributed to every project and initiative — the Little Italy arch, the festivals. They stored stuff for festivals and brought the grape-stomping equipment out with their forklift. They grew up here. This was their neighbourhood. As they became successful, they moved out the the suburbs. But they knew that this could be a vibrant community,” she said.
“A neighbourhood is made up of personalities and the people who weave it together. A strong thread has been broken in the fabric.”
Visitation will be held Tuesday at the Somerset chapel of the Kelly Funeral Home from noon to 5 p.m. and from 7 to 9 p.m. A funeral mass is to be held Wednesday at 10 a.m. at St. Anthony’s Church.
查看原文...
