About

Capitol Hardware was established in April, 1964 by Bill Adams, Sr. at 711 N. Milpas Street. It also included a lumber yard and roofing business. In 1971 the hardware portion of the business was purchased by an employee named Olas Gullic who relocated the business down the street to the corner of Alphonse and Milpas streets. In February of 1972, Gordon Reisig, who was previously a banker with Santa Barbara Bank & Trust, purchased the hardware business and moved it back to 711 N. Milpas. The business mainly sold commercial hardware and supplied the booming apartment construction market.

In April 1976, Reisig took the opportunity to purchase the property at 711 N. Milpas which included the lumber yard, Capitol Roof and The World of Magic. The roofing business went away, the magic shop relocated and Capitol Hardware and Building Supply expanded to fill the vacancies where it remains as a fixture on the Milpas Street corridor today.

Due to Capitol’s success at supplying quality building materials to the local commercial community, the business naturally expanded to supply the same quality products to retail clients as well. As the business continued to grow, the lumber yard, door and window showroom, and millwork shop was added, offering an even wider selection of products and services. In 1986, Alan Bleecker, Reisig’s son-in-law, joined Capitol and has been responsible for many of the strategic expansion initiatives. Alan is now the President and Chief Executive Officer. In 2000, Jay Bjorndahl, Reisig’s other son-in-law, joined the Capitol team and functions as the company’s Chief Financial Officer.

The past decade has seen the business shift from supplying commercial developments to custom-crafted residential projects. In 2007, the Capitol Design Showroom opened as a separate, trade-only, decorative design center offering expert consultation and project management to licensed architects, designers, and builders. The Design Showroom is the principal resource for the local luxury building industry who depend on extensive and case-specific expertise for custom architectural hardware applications.

Capitol Hardware is proud to serve all of Santa Barbara County as the largest decorative showroom between Los Angeles and San Francisco and boasts tradition as the premier supplier of quality hardware and building materials.