A 74-Year-Old Surplus Store Just Got Bought Out of Mid-Market

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Photo via Broke Ass Stuart

Kaplan's Surplus and Sporting Goods has been a family run operation for nearly three-quarters of a century. Benjamin Kaplan opened the store in 1939, and his 88 year-old son Zane Kaplan now runs it with his daughter Cathy Kaplan, who began working there when she was 15 for $1 per hour.

Many developers have knocked on their door, Zane Kaplan told the San Francisco Business Times, but no one came with an offer the family couldn't refuse until G and M Hospitality's recent bid. The Army-Navy shop, popular with Burners and Halloween revelers, will likely be the site of a hotel in the coming years. In the meantime, the Kaplan's are clearing out inventory and planning a "retirement sale" to begin any day now. Hey, i's never too early to get ready for Burning Man.
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