A Denver small business owner was given 60 days to vacate his store, so his customers stepped up in a heart-warming way to make sure he stayed on his feet.
“I’ll just throw it on for you, no charge,” Levi Crader said to a customer on the phone.
“Oh, my goodness!” a woman happily replied.
Crader is known for taking care of his customers.
“Thank you, Levi. Oh, my goodness. Thank you so much,” the customer added.
CBS
Crader has been repairing electronics for over a decade, and a few years ago bought iDenver Repairs, the shop he was managing.
“We rented out this suite, and have turned this into kind of our iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch repair lab in here,” said Crader, as he showed one section of his workshop to CBS Colorado.
The business has called this shop near Interstate 25 and Evans Avenue home for roughly 15 years. So Crader was shocked when, last month, his landlord told him he had 60 days to leave.
“Everybody in the building had to go,” Crader explained.
The landlord says he’s remodeling the building. Per the lease, he has the right to give a 30-day notice to end the agreement but extended it. Crader said it was helpful to have an extra 30 days to move out. Although he knew the clause existed, he never thought it would be exercised.
“For a business that’s been here for 15 years … that’s a tall ask,” Crader said.
Crader and the previous owner built out the workshop themselves.
“Literally, everything in here has been built and designed by us,” Crader said.
He says he’s put thousands of dollars into the buildout, signage and updates, and he will have to rebuild his workstation in a new location. That’s when his customers stepped up to help, donating nearly $3,000 toward the cause.
“It makes me almost emotional thinking about it, because people have truly been so kind and so comforting and so warm,” Crader said.
His loyal customers have also shared words of encouragement. Crader read part of a letter one of his customers dropped off.
“I am including an inspirational quote about change and a good luck piece. It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the most responsive to change,” Crader read the letter. “Best wishes in your journey, and may the new location be even better for you.”
Crader and his customers have proven iDenver is an example of a small business with a big impact, and a community stepping up.
The shop will remain at its original location through the month of April. Thanks to help from customers, Crader will be able to start building out his new workshop at a location a few blocks away on Colorado Boulevard. The new store will open May 1.
