Quick and Grice has been a household name in Picayune for as long as most people can remember.

The business started as a “petroleum jobbership,” back in the early 1930’s when Charles Hooker Quick and Johnny Grice pooled their resources, according to an old article in the Mississippi Propane Gas Association magazine.

David “Dickie” Travis has been the manager of the hardware business for the past 50 years, which officially started in 1936.

A second location of the business was opened on the north side of Picayune in 2005, just a short time before Hurricane Katrina made landfall that year. The first 100 customers of the second location received 5 gallons of a propane fill in their own tank during the grand opening; a gift that came in handy in the days following that major storm, Travis said.

Today, both locations of the family owned business still sell hardware, propane, lumber, well water pumps and building materials, to name a few items.

As an official ACE Hardware distributor, arguably one of the first in the state, customers can find many of those brand name products on the shelves, Travis said.

Today, the business employs 25, most of whom are full time, Travis said.

Propane is still one of Quick and Grice’s main products, a commodity that can be delivered for use in homes from Poplarville to northern Hancock County.

With big box stores offering some of the same products, Travis said that there is a misconception that those items are cheaper at the corporate owned stores. But he said there are many times the same product is cheaper at Quick and Grice.

Customers can also find knowledgeable staff and shorter wait times at the locally owned hardware business, Travis said. Many times, customers come in for advice on fixing a faucet or some other item.

Both locations of the business are open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The south location, at 1007 U.S. 11 South, is open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. The northern location, officially known as Hooker’s ACE Hardware, can be found at 6422 Highway 11 North and is open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday. Both locations are closed on Sunday.

Staff can be reached at 601-798-4445 at the north location and at 601-798-4851 at the south location.