WILKES-BARRE — After nearly a half century working in his family’s hobby and recreation business, Doug Gebhardt retired recently and sold Gebhardts Billiards and Bowling to the fifth generation, his son-in-law.
Gebhardts Billiards and Bowling opened in 1906 as a pool hall and smoke shop on Main Street in Hazleton, later adding two bowling lanes. The business adapted and expanded over the years — venturing into the wholesale bowling market serving 10 states in the Northeast corridor and adding other retail locations in Wilkes-Barre and Allentown.
Gebhardt, 71, was there for much of the way. But, he decided now is the time to retire.
“We wanted to do it a few years back but it took a while,” said Gebhardt, who now lives in Bear Creek Village. “The business kept me always working and worrying and thinking. Now, I don’t have the worries about all the things that need to be done. I’m enjoying retirement, but adjusting.”
Gebhardt and his brother, John, 76, of Allentown, owned and operated the business since their father died in 1977.
Gebhardts Billiards and Bowling continues to have locations on Mundy Street in Wilkes-Barre and on Airport Road in Allentown. The business is now owned by Gebhardt’s son-in-law and longtime Allentown store manager Bob Brandt and a business partner, Brent Frisch. The Hazleton location closed in 2005.
The business specializes in selling and servicing home recreation products, like pool, air hockey, and shuffleboard tables — even personal skee-ball machines like the ones at arcades at the beach. The business also sells bowling balls, equipment and gear and creates custom trophies, awards and engravings.
Over the decades, pool and bowling were closely aligned as the Brunswick Corporation — a leader in the industry — had their pool tables located at places where it had bowling lanes, so that’s how the Gebhardts business was modeled, an excerpt on the Gebhardts website says.
Gebhardt worked for the company for three years while in high school in Hazleton. He spent the summer of 1972 cleaning up the Wilkes-Barre location at South Main and Academy streets that was devastated by the flood caused by Tropical Storm Agnes. That store never reopened and the company wouldn’t add another Wilkes-Barre location until 2001 when it opened its current store.
After graduating from the University of Hartford, Gebhardt started working full time for his father in the Hazleton store in 1976. A year later, when Gebhardt was 23, his father died of cancer and he was left to run the Hazleton store. His brother was tasked with running the Allentown store.
It was business as usual for many years.
“Based on history, it has its ups and downs. We saw some real lows. It’s steady now,” Gebhardt recalled.
The company sold its wholesale bowling business in 2008 right before the financial crisis hit, a fortunate move Gebhardt said “saved our business.”
Gebhardt’s daughter Tammy joined the business as controller in 2004 — becoming the fifth generation family member to work for the company. While working for the company, Tammy met her husband and future owner of the company, Bob Brandt, the longtime manager of the Allentown store.
Tammy tragically died in 2009 of a brain aneurysm and Brandt stayed with the company until he purchased it earlier this year from Gebhardt and his brother.
Brandt has taken on the task of carrying on the Gebhardt family business legacy — now 119 years old.
“We couldn’t have done it without our employees. We have a whole bunch that were very loyal, many that worked for us 20, 30, 40 and even 50 years,” Gebhardt said. “We’ve had some very loyal customers over the years. Because of that, word of mouth was our best advertising.”
Gebhardt said the business catered to family friendly fun.
“Both bowling and billiards can appeal to males and females, children, young adults and seniors. They both could be very social where you are interacting with people,” Gebhardt said. “It’s something that gets people away from their smartphone screens. That is needed and vital these days.”
