Susan Loyer

@SusanLoyerMyCJ

Retail business has been a staple in the community for more than 100 years.

Shoppers were saddened and surprised the retail store is closing.

BOUND BROOK - A popular family-owned retail business, which has been a staple in the community for more than 100 years, is closing its doors.

Efinger Sporting Goods, 513 W. Union Ave., is closing its retail establishment by the end of the year, said Evan Greenberg, who co-owns the business with Thomas Hoey.

“The business climate has changed and we felt it was time to close the doors,” he said. “It’s very sad. It’s very unfortunate for everyone involved. Our customers are everything to us. We’ve had generations of families shop here. We’ll miss them. They’ve become friends and it’s tough — you won’t see your friends all the time. They probably feel like this place is a part of them, as well."

While the retail end of the business is closing, Efinger Team, School and Corporate Sales Division, which has been supplying organizations for more than 80 years, will remain open — for now, Greenberg said.

“We are going to try to continue the school and team business, which is run as a separate part of our business,” Greenberg said. “Right now it will continue to be run out of the upstairs of the Bound Brook store.”

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The Robbinsville sales office for that part of the business also will remain open, he said.

The reaction

A steady stream of shoppers, who were surprised and saddened to hear about the business closing, visited the store on Friday. Lugging fishing poles, bikes and clothing, the faithful patrons waited patiently in line at the cash registers.

Borough resident James Bantin stopped at the store and was one of the shoppers surprised to find it was closing.

“I’ve been coming here since I was a kid," he said. "When I was a kid, we used to come for sleds, baseball gloves and all kinds of stuff. Then we would come here whenever my daughter needed something when she was playing sports. It’s always been here. I'm very surprised.”

Linda Hering of Branchburg also has been shopping at the store since childhood.

“I grew up in Middlesex and we’ve been coming here forever for uniforms, baseball equipment and all kinds of stuff,” she said. “It’s an institution. It’s just been here forever. It’s a shame, but the big-box stores and the Amazons are just taking over.”

With fishing poles in hand, borough resident Rashan Goodall also was sorry to see the store was closing.

“I’ve been coming here since I moved to the area about seven years ago,” he said. “It’s close to home and it’s a family store, too. Everyone there is really nice. I bought a lot of stuff here — my canoes, my rowing equipment and lots of other things. I’ll miss it.”

Mayor Robert Fazen said he too is sorry to see the store close.

"We're really going to miss Efinger's," the mayor said.

In a Facebook comment, Mary Jane Morrissey wrote, "Another fine business closes down. What's wrong with NJ? Business are leaving, senior citizens are leaving and now a legend is closing. Something is wrong in NJ."

Chris Pinzone wrote in a Facebook comment: "I was in Basking Ridge for years, but I live in MA & work in MD these days. I went to Effingers (sic) for decades starting when I was a student at Rutgers in the 70s. You could always find whatever you needed for fishing or hunting there and they always had great tips and advice. They would order parts for reels and then install them for you. Its (sic) a shame that these places are disappearing all over the country. They are invaluable to sportsmen and their disappearance correlates with the lower numbers of participants in this sport."

The history

The business has been in Hoey’s family for 107 years, Greenberg said.

In 1909, George A. Efinger opened a combination newsstand, billiard parlor and bowling alley on Main Street across the street from the train station, according to Efinger's website.

But Efinger soon found that many of his patrons would forsake the parlor games for outdoor activities, when hunting and fishing season came about, the website said.

In 1927, Efinger's son, George, became head of the organization and as a result of his love of team sports, Efinger became a staple for all types of sports equipment and uniforms for schools, organizations and colleges. George's younger brother, Frank, also joined the business, the website said.

During the late 1930s and '40s, Efinger grew to become the distribution point for most of the top-selling sporting brands throughout the major tri-state (Pennsylvania-New York-New Jersey) market, the website said.

In 1974, Efinger moved into a 54,000-square-foot facility at its current location on Union Avenue. By that time, Frank's sister, Marie Efinger Hoey, was involved in the family business. Her son, Jim, was corporate vice president, and her other son, Tom, was corporate CEO and headed the team, school and college supply business, the website said.

In 1999, Jim Hoey sold his half of Efinger to friend and business associate Murray Greenberg.

In September 2005, a new facility was built on their existing property, expanding to a 50,000-square-foot state-of-the-art shopping experience. A 1,000-gallon shark tank was introduced, as well as new bike and golf departments, the website said.

Five years later, Greenberg sold his half of the business to his son, Evan.

According to its website, Efinger is one of the oldest and largest sporting goods team and sports distribution centers in the U.S.

The property currently is owned by Greenberg’s father, Murray, and Thomas Hoey.

Efingers is on the market to be rented, Greenberg said.

Good Will will be moving into a building next to Efinger.

“They are moving really fast and it looks like they should be open within a couple of weeks,” he said.

Staff Writer Susan Loyer: 732-565-7243; sloyer@gannettnj.com