FRANKLIN—City Paint and Supply, a longtime Main Street business in Franklin, is going out of business.

Located at 113 N. Main St., City Paint is getting rid of its inventory and supplies.

Owner Beverly Myers said she just couldn’t compete anymore with the “big box stores.”

The historic building survived Hurricane Floyd, and Myers said she has put “a lot of blood, sweat and tears” into cleaning up and redoing everything following the destruction caused by the floodwater.

Coral Bristow bought the business from Ernest Joyner back in May of 1970. At that time, the business was located where the Chamber walk is now. The former building is gone.

In 1975, Bristow rented the current location and moved from Second Avenue to Main Street. Reliable Furniture used to be located in the historic building.

Myers said almost the entire block was owned by the White family and was held in a trust, but after the flood decided to sell. Bristow, who was Myers’ stepfather, had the chance to purchase the building, so he and Myers’ mother, Fannie Spain Bristow, bought it. After Coral Bristow died, Myers and her mother bought the building together. She has owned it for the past 10 years. The building has original wooden floors, which survived the flood, and tin ceilings.

The closing of the business is bittersweet for Myers. She has struggled to keep the paint and supply store viable.

“The independent paint stores cannot make it anymore,” she stressed. She has lost a lot of local clientele over the years, including contractors, Union Camp and the schools.

Myers, who prides herself in having worked one-on-one with the customers, worked out of her home after Hurricane Floyd.

“I had customers calling me wanting to know what colors they had,” she recalled.

Myers had files where she would write down the paint formulas and some did survive the flood.

She wants her customers to know that if they come by, she will do her best to give them their paint colors written down to be used for future reference.

Myers wants to get rid of everything in the store — all paint, brushes, rollers, cans of spray paint and all paint accessories.

She hopes to repurpose the building and provide an avenue for local artist to display their work.

“There are a lot of local artists in the area and I want to provide a craftsman’s showcase,” Myers explained. She doesn’t want to rent out booths for these artists, but rather open space so it will flow throughout the store. She herself makes jewelry and hopes this venture will be realized.

She will remain a part of the Downtown Divas and does not want to leave downtown, as she feels ingrained in the downtown community.

A longtime member of the Downtown Franklin Association, Myers is very active in promoting downtown Franklin.

She urges everyone to come in and purchase at discount prices the supplies she has left. For further information, contact her at 562-2147.