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Few businesses have been able to withstand the test of time, but this week, Eklund's Appliance and TV is celebrating their 100th birthday.

Current owner Cal Eklund said, "We've had four generations; my great-grandfather started the business and my grandfather came up during the Depression."

What originally started as a hardware and general merchandise store has expanded into one of the top appliance stores across the state.

But even with the changes, one theme has remained constant through the generations; Cal said, "Take care of that customer. You take care of that customer and that customer will keep coming back."

And that's exactly what Eklund's has been doing.

Walline Campbell has been an Eklund's customer since 1967, and said, "They're awesome. We've stuck with them the whole time, with warranties and everything."

And Walline isn't the only customer that's kept coming back.

Cal noted, "We actually have three and four generations of customers also. So, it's really neat to see a mom and dad bring in their kids and say this is the place to shop."

What's next? Simple, said Cal: "I hope we keep going for another 100 years."

As part of their week-long celebration, Eklund's is having a free cash drawing every day as well as giving out food cooked using the appliances in their store.

Another Great Falls business, National Laundry, also celebrated the centennial mark recently.
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