PFI diversifies with opening of Diamond Ridge Market

Little, owner of PFI Western Store at 2816 S. Ingram Mill Road, offers wine and gourmet cheese at Diamond Ridge, and an expanded saddle selection at Saddle City. His lineup already includes boots, western wear and western-themed gifts.

“Opposites attract,” Little said of merging the wine and cowboy themes. “Everybody thinks I’m crazy, which I probably am. No one expects for it to be together.”

Diamond Ridge and Saddle City are housed in a 17,000-square-foot building next to PFI, and each store has its own entrance.

PFI had used the parking lot of the Diamond Ridge building, formerly Club Nutrition & Fitness, for outdoor events such as concerts and tent sales, and when the property came up for sale, he saw an opportunity. According to the deed of trust filed with the Greene County recorder’s office, Little borrowed $1.9 million to purchase the building June 28 from Ridgeview Fitness LLC. Little declined to disclose the actual purchase price.

At first, Little said, the parking lot was worth more to him than the actual facility. As ideas such as a PFI gourmet foods store began to surface, the empty building began to look like a potentially profitable venture.

Little said several hundreds of thousands of people visit PFI each year, so it was easy for him to see the value of extending PFI brands.

“They want to buy PFI stuff – PFI barbecue sauce, PFI hats, PFI anything,” Little said. “So, I said, let’s give them PFI wines, PFI cheeses and PFI gourmet foods.”

Diamond Ridge fills 5,000 square feet of the building with more than 400 varieties of domestic and international wines, including PFI labels that come from St. James Winery in Missouri and Napa Valley in California, and 120 kinds of cheese. There’s also a 16-foot wine tasting bar that is open during all hours of operation.

“We’re converting people to wine every single day here,” Little said.

Tyler Jolley, resident wine specialist and manager of Diamond Ridge, said that at many wine stores, wine selection is a guessing game.

“What we’re doing is getting rid of the game so that you can come and try different wines all the time, buy wines that you love and leave with something you know you’re going to like,” Jolley said.

So far, Little’s approach seems to be well-received among his customers.

“The very first customer, when we opened up, bought three or four bottles of wine and three or four horseshoes,” Little said.

Longtime customer Mike Fraker, a partner in commercial construction firm Lloyd Fraker Investments, typically visits PFI to buy horse essentials such as saddles, western attire and boots, which he buys every Christmas for his wife, his grandkids and his son-in-law. He said he has visited Diamond Ridge.

“I’m not a wine drinker, but I’m a big cheese eater. We bought cheese and … other condiments – a lot of their private labels like pickles and stuff,” Fraker said.

Little said diversification is crucial for continued business growth.

“I think that you’ve got to keep on expanding your customer base because it changes – it’s a moving target,” Little said. “If you’re not growing, you’re going backwards.”

PFI’s Roots

The letters PFI stand for Preferred Farmers Inc. The store, founded in 1975, started as a one-room feed store with a desk and two chairs.