Household China in Waterloo celebrating last Christmas before closing

After 58 years, Household China & Gifts in North Waterloo is closing its doors.

Owner Traudie Kauntz says this will be their last Christmas, but it is a time to be celebrated.

“It’s been fun but I think retail has changed,” says Kauntz, “our lives have changed, I was actually retired before I took over the business, and I’d actually like to take my mom travelling a bit because she worked all her life in the business.”

Kauntz’s father George built their first shop with his own hands many years ago and officially opened the store in 1966, moving to their current location in 1980.

Kauntz took over the business ten years ago.

She says it’s amazing to see how the city has grown and changed around them, and she just doesn’t know how much a store like theirs fits into the area anymore.

“It’s just time to change it up. We’re really excited to be able to close our doors and say to our customers, ‘we love you so much so come shop with us and we’ll give you a present just as a memory’.”

They will be offering free gifts to customers during the Christmas seasons, with sales in the coming months before they close and donate some of their remaining inventory to churches and charities.

Since they own the shop, Kauntz says there is no rush to close or to sell, and she’s happy to be able to do it on their own terms, and even still have the possibility of opening up a smaller shop sometime in the future.