Ron and Kathy Birkestrand pose in their downtown Webster City store, Osweiler’s. A retirement sale begins today.

Ask Ron and Kathy Birkestrand about their years owning Osweiler’s and they will talk about the loyal employees who have made it all possible.

They will also speak another language, the language of women’s ready-to-wear. Those sentences are peppered with brand names such as Slimsations and a very sincere appreciation for the feel of fine fabrics.

To retire, the Birkestrands must begin to relinquish all that: beloved employees and the season’s finest separates.

Therefore, today begins what they are calling their Retirement Sale. It is a sale that will help them wind down 42 years of downtown Webster City retail.

Reflecting on their journey, Kathy Birkestrand, said: “I can’t think of any way I would have rather spent the last 42 years. We’ve had the privilege of dressing mothers, daughters, and even granddaughters, often under the same roof. That kind of continuity is rare, and we feel so blessed to have been part of so many milestones in people’s lives.”

Their hope is that they can gradually release their ties to Osweiler’s, the women’s fashion store that has been centered in the 600 block of Webster City since the early 1970s.

To do that, they are offering 30% off all new fall merchandise and clearance items reduced by as much as 80%.

Osweiler’s was named for Paul and Shirley Osweiler, the owners who grew a much smaller store into the then-innovative multiple store front on the block’s north side. The store featured a young women’s area just off the street and garments for more mature women further in. Separate staffs specialized in the two departments.

Another innovation was the beauty salon built into the northern end of the store; women could get their hair done and then shop just a few steps out that door. Occasionally, a woman in curlers would shop while she awaited her blow out.

The Birkestrands bought the store from the Osweilers in September of 1983. Years later, they purchased the building.

What began as a career move soon became a lifetime calling, they said.

Kathy, a Webster City native, and Ron, whose career had spanned several Sears department store leadership positions across the Midwest, saw an opportunity to bring their family home. With four children in tow, they planted roots in Webster City and poured their energy into

Osweiler’s.

Eventually, Osweiler’s expanded to include stores in Algona, Carroll and Storm Lake. Webster City remained the flagship.

The Algona and Carroll stores have long since been closed. Last Saturday, they closed the store in Storm Lake and sold the building there.

The 4,000-square-foot Webster City store brought shoppers to the community.

Paul Osweiler, when he was negotiating the sale of the store back in 1983, said it would be that way.

“When we bought from Paul, he told us about 60% comes from out of town and 35% in town,” Ron Birkestrand said. “I don’t know if that’s shifted a whole lot.”

For the past 15 years, Sonia Sosa Rodriguez has been Osweiler’s manager; the Birkestrands also have two other valued employees: Alesia Ridenour and Kate Feltz.

Overall, though, what started with upscale women’s apparel that made Osweiler’s a destination for tailored career pieces and high-quality casual wear also became a love affair with the community.

“We’re deeply thankful,” Ron Birkestrand said. “Webster City has given us everything we hoped for — and more.”

In the meantime, the retirement sale will continue until the inventory is gone.

“I can remember when we took over, when we took over an inventory, it was about $100,000,” Ron Birkestrand said.

“Yeah, and he got the inventory down for us,” Kathy added, referring to Paul Osweiler. “And so he had his clearance sale and he got it down lower so we didn’t have to spend quite so much to buy that.”

It’s a scenario the Birkestrands would welcome as they prepare to retire.