Ed Clark has operated his Clark & Sons Small Engine Repair shop for 42 years. Photo by Connie Voss

GRIDLEY, CA (MPG) – After 42 years in business, Clark & Sons Small Engine Repair, located at 1291 State Highway 99 in Gridley, will permanently close.

Owned and operated by Gridley residents Ed and Barbara Clark, the business has a good reputation for selling and repairing small equipment such as chainsaws, weed eaters and lawn mowers. They owned the shop while raising their family, which now includes three grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Barbara Clark did the bookkeeping and a variety of other tasks to keep the Clark & Sons Small Engine Repair business running smoothly. 

Clark & Sons was twice voted “Neighborhood Fave” for Gardening and Landscaping in 2023 and 2024 on the Nextdoor.com website. 

Shown is the very familiar Clark & Sons Small Engine Repair’s storefront on State Highway 99. Courtesy photo

The Clark & Sons Small Engine Repair shop is arrayed with antique tools on the walls and filled with repaired equipment waiting for pickup. Before closing the doors, Ed Clark will repair what is left at the shop and not take in additional repair jobs. 

Ed Clark and his father opened his father’s shop on Live Oak Boulevard in 1959. Prior to opening his own shop in November 1982, Ed Clark worked as a carpenter for eight-and-a-half years.   

During the last 42 years, there have been open houses with home-cooked food, drawings for free equipment and demonstrations by chainsaw carvers. The Clarks have also supported chainsaw carving events at the fairgrounds with free drawings for chainsaws and blowers.

State restrictions on gasoline-powered tools have severely undercut the Clark’s business. They are unable to sell popular brands such as Husqvarna and Snapper, because those brands are no longer shipped to California.

A wide array of repaired power tools are waiting for pickup at Clark & Sons Small Engine Repair. Photo by Connie Voss

“About three-fourths of the business this past year has been repairs only,” due to the shortage of equipment to sell, the couple said.

Along with their ages (both are 83), Barbara Clark said “It’s time to retire.”

Ed Clark said “I can continue at home, sharpening chains and doing stuff like that.”

When asked if he will miss the business, Ed Clark replied, “Of course I will!”