Handy Andy Home Improvement Centers was founded as Arrow Lumber Company by Joseph Rashkow in 1947 on the south side of Chicago.
[1] The company grew to 72 stores in seven American states (Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, Mississippi, Michigan, Tennessee, and Kentucky).
[citation needed] The company's core product mix included hardware, lumber, building materials, home decor, kitchen/bath and lawn/garden.
The stores were highly visible and well known for their very large vertical stripes of brown and white that would typically cover the entire building.
[2] Handy Andy declared bankruptcy on October 17, 1995, due to creditor pressures, which led to the closure of about 20 of its stores.