TITLETOWN (NBC 26) — As the Green Bay Packers practice facilities near Lambeau Field have grown over the years, one thing has stayed the same — a soap store has stood right next door to the stadium. But now, it's a bittersweet goodbye for the family-run business.
Watch Titletown neighborhood reporter Karl Winter's full story here:
The parking lot next to Soap Products LLC has seen game-day parking prices skyrocket, a hundred-fold.
"They're getting $50 a car," John Heyn, the store's former owner, said.
And back in the 1960s, they were getting...
"50 cents."
The parking lot has also seen Packers legends visit and interact with the owners and employees.
"Bart Starr was very much of a gentleman," Heyn added.
"Aaron Rodgers, when he first came, he would always park right outside our door over here, and he would come and chat before practice," the current owner, John's son-in-law Tim Glodoski, said.
Watching practice from the store was easy: You could just peek out a window to the field outside.
John and Karen Heyn bought the place in 1966, and it's been in their family ever since.
"Our daughter and son-in-law took it over, and now our grandchildren are taking it over," Heyn said. "So it's a third generation, and I'm pretty proud of that."
John passed the soap store down to his son-in-law Tim Glodoski, and Tim's children are next.
But after six decades here, it's the end of an era.
"We've got a lot of memories from this location," Glodoski said. "And, yeah, it's sad to see it go, but we're really excited about our new building and the next generation ready to take over."
The business outgrew the building, as it lacked the necessary warehouse space to match demand. So the Glodoskis finally sold it to the Packers for $1.6 million.
They've cleaned out 60 years of memories, and now, they're locking the doors for the final time.
They're on to greener pastures — a shiny new location in Maple Grove, near Pulaski.
"We've had a lot of customers that are neighbors to our new location, that have come in just out of curiosity, and we've picked up a number of customers that way," Glodoski said.
With the entire operation still family-run, as all five regular employees are part of the Glodoski family, it's time for the next chapter in their story.
"Pretty amazing, when you stop to think about it," Heyn said.
On Friday, the Glodoski family will officially hand over the keys. The Packers told NBC 26 the building and property are "in position for potential future development," but did not elaborate on the team's plans for the site.
