Owners open mini mart on a whim

It was on a whim that new business owners Charles Rauch and Donald Ashba Sr. decided to open the new Easy Stop Mini Mart at 9570 Diamond Centre Drive.

Rauch and Ashba both previously worked at Classic Auto Group.

“Out of the blue, we just decided to leave the car business for a little while and start a convenience store,” Rauch said. “We saw a little need for it.”

According to Rauch, Ashba’s family owns a couple of convenience stores, so they were able to get a little inside information on running one.

They both feel that the location is such a busy location that there is the need for a mini mart there, and decided to open one.

Ashba said he saw a forlease sign on the Diamond Centre Drive location and called about it.

“Next thing you know, six months later here we are,” Ashba said.

Rauch has no convenience store experience and neither does Ashba, outside of his father and brother both owning one. Business has been going pretty good since their soft opening Dec. 8, Rauch said. He added that business is getting better each week.

“People are starting to find out. It’s just a matter of getting the word that we are here,” Rauch said. “The Easy Stop is our name we just kind of made, so not everybody knows exactly what it is.”

Currently, the store sells mostly convenience items: beer, wine cigarettes, snack foods, and a small grocery section with a dairy cooler.

Within the next couple of weeks, they also will have a lottery machine to sell tickets.

In addition, they plan to include produce and possibly a deli later on.

The store opens daily at 8 a.m. and closes Monday through Thursday at 11 p.m.; Friday and Saturday at midnight; and 10 p.m. on Sunday.

Hours could be adjusted during the summer months, Ashba said.

KRISTI GARABRANDT — THE NEWS-HERALD New business owners Donald Ashba Sr. and Charles Rauch stock the coolers at their recently opened mini mart, Easy Stop located at 9570 Diamond Centre Drive in Mentor.