Marx Hardware & Paint Co.

Established in 1875, this neighborhood hardware store is among the city’s oldest businesses still in existence. Located in the Old North neighborhood, the shop makes keys and sells tools, building supplies, paint, varnish, plumbing and electrical equipment, and home repair items. Acquired by the Marx family in 1903, brothers Steve and Andy Marx currently run the shop. In 2015, The Riverfront Times included Marx Hardware & Paint Co. on its "Best of St. Louis" list.

Located in Old North St. Louis, this neighborhood hardware store was established in 1875, a decade after the end of the Civil War, and it is still in existence. Currently, the shop is owned by brothers Andy and Steve Marx, the fifth generation of the family who acquired the business in 1903. Marx Hardware & Paint Co. has remained a fixture in Old North, and the owners are hands-on in their approach to running the shop. They will often offer customers tips for tackling home renovation and rehabilitation projects in the area, and they also support the community through participation in local events.

In June 2007, a filmmaker and photographer scouted Marx Hardware & Paint Co. as a location for a 48-Hour Film Project. The shop had remained largely the same since the Marx family first acquired it over a century ago, still selling penny nails and house-made window glaze by the pound, in addition to the latest building supplies and home repair items. Owners Andy and Steve Marx were amenable to the shop being used for a film shoot, noting that any day would be suitable for filming except Saturday mornings, when a weekly polka show aired on the radio. As the filmmaker noted, the owners are usually willing to give informal advice regarding the restoration of older homes in the neighborhood. They are integral part of the Old North community, volunteering their time each year during the Polish Festival held nearby at St. Louis Place.

The Riverfront Times named Marx Hardware & Paint Co. the "Best Hardware Store in St. Louis" in 2015. Customers and visitors are reminded look up when they enter the shop in order to catch a glimpse of the giant harmonica suspended from the ceiling. Among the shop's other distinctive features, a pot-bellied wood-burning stove keeps the shop warm throughout the winter. In an interview for St. Louis Public Radio, Steve Marx stated that during an earlier generation, “hardware stores were like bakeries, barbershops … every few blocks there was one, and a tavern in every corner, and everybody made a living in this town. It’s so difficult to see the change.” 

Those who come into the shop often wonder about the container of skeleton keys on the counter near the front register. Steve and Andy Marx keep the old keys around because they tend to spark people’s curiosity; customers find it interesting that a single master key could be used to open so many different locks. Yet the brothers are uncertain whether the family business will continue for a sixth generation. Once they both retire, it could be the end for the neighborhood hardware store, even though it's been a mainstay in Old North for over a hundred and fifty years. The shop was featured in the book Oldest St. Louis (2020), written by the historian NiNi Harris, with a book signing held on site. In 2015, St. Louis on the Air concluded that:

“Walking into Marx Hardware & Paint Co. feels a bit like taking a trip into the past, with its hardwood floors, hand-painted signs and wood-burning stove that keeps the place warm. The brothers have kept a lot of things from bygone days, including an old plaque for the St. Louis Hardware Retailers Association, a group that no longer exists.”

Altman, Maria. "Three Small St. Louis Hardware Stores On Keeping Up (And Keeping Open)", St. Louis Public Radio: St. Louis on the Air. January 29th, 2015. Accessed February 16th, 2023. https://news.stlpublicradio.org/economy-business/2015-01-29/three-small-st-louis-hardware-stores-on-keeping-up-and-keeping-open.

"Best Hardware Store: Marx Hardware and Paint Co.", RFT. December 31st, 2015. Accessed February 16th, 2023. https://www.riverfronttimes.com/best-of/2015/goods-and-services/best-hardware-store-3021720.

Jackson, Nathan. "Old North St. Louis Historic Neighborhood Tour", St. Louis History & Architecture. Accessed February 16th, 2023. https://www.stlhistoryandarchitecture.com/walking-tours.

Jump, Frank H.. "Fading Ad Blog Rotating Header Image Marx Hardware & Paint Co., Inc. – Est. 1875 – St. Louis, MO", Fading Ad Blog. April 5th, 2016. Accessed February 16th, 2023. https://www.fadingad.com/fadingadblog/2016/04/05/marx-hardware-paint-co-inc-est-1875-st-louis-mo/.

"Old North: Marx Hardware", Flickr / Northside_STL. June 1st, 2007. Accessed February 16th, 2023. https://www.flickr.com/photos/ilovenorthstl/3681953385.