Pictured is Brian Nelson, who has moved Falconer Vac Shop into the former home of The Blue Fin Pet Shop in the village. Nelson had to work out of a shed starting in 2018 as the result of a fire that damaged his former storefront. P-J photos by Nikk Holland

FALCONER — The Falconer Vac Shop is operating out of a building for the first time in about three years.

In 2018, Brian Nelson was forced to move his business into a shed as the result of the fires that plagued Main Street in Falconer. He called this the “Vac Shack,” and was surprised at the amount of business he received operating out of a shed.

“It’s been very busy and unbelievable,” Nelson said. “I did not have to shut down during COVID because I was an essential service. It’s been unbelievable all three years have been very busy. It was very tight, but it was good.”

Nelson has sold the shed and plans on moving it out on Sunday morning.

“I want to thank the village of Falconer for working with me until I got something a little more permanent,” Nelson said. “I’m very grateful the village let me do that for the three years. I don’t know what I would’ve done otherwise.”

Although business hummed throughout the shack experiment, Nelson is happy to be back inside an official building. His business is now located where The Blue Fin Pet Shop used to operate on Main Street before closing this summer.

“I think it’s six times bigger than that shed was,” Nelson said while he laughed. “It’s wide open, I have an air conditioner, I’ve got a furnace and we’ve got a bathroom. All the essentials. It just feels great.”

Nelson said as soon as he received the key to the building, he got to work.

“I got the key on the first or second of June, and I started right away,” Nelson said. “I was in within a week.”

He had to complete some minor work, such as painting and installing a new carpet, but he was ready to begin working out of a real building.

“Just a little bit of carpet, and changing some stuff around,” Nelson said. “I started (working on it) June 5, and I was done and over here on June 9. I was over here at 4 o’clock in the morning a couple days getting it done.”

With the move to a more spacious storefront, Nelson is able to go back to what he used to do.

“I’m able to display more vacuums like I used to,” Nelson said. “I used to have like 300 vacuums on display in the store, and then I down-sized because business got worse.”

Nelson said the move is timely, because since Sears went out of business, he is one of the only vacuum repair shops left in the area.

“Everybody is gone. Nobody repairs vacuums but me,” Nelson said.

On top of selling and servicing vacuums, Nelson sells poly-wood furniture, makes copies and also repairs window and door screens. He is continuing all aspects of his business at his new location.

“I’m good with the way it is right now,” Nelson said. “It’s bigger than it was before the fire, and it’s really great. It’s a nice building and it’s working out perfect.”

Nelson currently does vacuum repairs in the car port he owns across the street, “which works out well,” he said.

When it comes to the Vac Shack, Nelson will miss the openness of the shed.

“I’ll be sad to see it go,” Nelson said. “I could open up the doors, go out into all my furniture and sit and watch the traffic go by.”