Tom Huppert knew how to sell.
The St. Paul business man mastered the cardinal rules of salesmanship to such an extent, he transformed his father’s “fix-up” shop into a large-scale appliance business known up and down Rice Street.
Huppert, whose renown earned him the crown of King Boreas in the 1993 St. Paul Winter Carnival, died Tuesday at the Mayo Clinic from complications during aortic surgery. He was 67.
For 40 years starting in the early 1960s, Huppert owned North End Machine & Appliance at 911 Rice St. — “the emergency address for appliances” — with his red trucks delivering appliances to a mostly blue-collar clientele.
His first cardinal rule: Make service personal.
“Some woman would call up and say, ‘My vacuum cleaner belt broke.’ He said, ‘I’ll bring you over one in a minute,’ and he’d jump in his car and bring one,” his wife, Cindy, remembered. “If you bought something 10 years ago and you walked into the store, he’d say, ‘Hi John Smith, what do you need today?’ People were amazed he’d remember ’em.”
Sometimes, his penchant for service just got out of hand.
One Labor Day, a woman called wanting a washer and dryer delivered, though the store was closed. Huppert agreed to take them out personally and the woman was so pleased, she tacked on a stove and dishwasher — without even looking at them.
“We were late for a picnic, but he got a sale,” his wife said. “She was a waitress — she took out a (grocery) bag full of money, five dollar bills and ones, and started counting it out. That’s how it was. Those were the folks he served.”
In 1971, Huppert was named the Winter Carnival’s North Wind Titan. In 1993, he was named King Boreas.
“He loved the pomp and circumstance. He loved wearing his king’s outfit. He just loved everything about it. He walked around like a peacock,” his wife said.
Born in River Falls, Wis., Huppert’s family moved to St. Paul when he was a boy. He graduated from Washington High School. Before that, he became a fixture at his father’s tiny machine shop, repairing toasters and vacuum cleaners.
A few years after graduating, Huppert bought three washing machines from Whirlpool. He sold them, and with the profits bought five more.
“He had this little tiny room, and there was no space. So he bought the house next door and added on. Then a big warehouse behind,” his wife said.
“We called that ‘the Huppert Dome,’ ” said Mike Thomas of Plaza TV and Appliance, who has been in the business since the 1950s.
“He was so demonstrative on the floor. Always nattily dressed, confident, reassuring,” Thomas said. “People would think, ‘If you buy here, you’re going to be taken care of.’ ”
Huppert is survived by his wife; his mother, Vi; five sisters; and three brothers.
Visitation will be 4 to 8 p.m. today at Bradshaw Funeral Home, 4600 Greenhaven Drive, White Bear Township. Services will be 10 a.m. Saturday at St. Genevieve Community Center, 6995 Centerville Road, Centerville.
Tad Vezner can be reached at 651-228-5461.
Copyright 2008 Pioneer Press.