Location: Fair Grove, Mo.
Owner: Dan Muse
History: Dan Muse opened Fair Grove Feed-N-Trade in 1993 after moving to Fair Grove, Mo., from Texas in 1987.
“I retired from the railroad and I like this type of business, and I like to visit with people,” Dan said. “We also like the area and the people. I traveled a lot with the railroad and always liked it here. I’ve always been kind of a hobbyist, so this fits in with what I like to do.”
Products and services: Fair Grove Feed-N-Trade carries Purina, ADT and Crescent feeds, in addition to Dan’s own custom mix, which is manufactured at Marshfield Mills in Marshfield, Mo.
“We have a horse feed and I have my own mixture of Golden Master Beef, chicken feed and all stock,” Dan explained. “A nutritionist formulates it and I try it out on my stock at home to make sure we get it the way we want it. I tell him what I want and he will come up with the formula. I’ll feed it for awhile, then we will go back and forth on it to see what we need.”
Feed products are only available in bags, and Dan said Fair Grove Feed-N-Trade does not offer delivery.
In addition to livestock feeds, Fair Grove Feed-N-Trade also offers horse tack, animal health products, lawn and garden supplies and hay, as well as Purina and Victor dog food, and other products.
“Just about anything a small hobbyist would want, we have,” Dan said. “That’s what I’ve been all my life, so I know what people need.”
Business philosophy: “I just try to treat customers the way I want to be treated,” Dan said, adding that all customers pay the same for products at Fair Grove Feed-N-Trade, be it for one bag of feed or 100.
Future: At the age of 82, Dan has no plans to retire.
“I like the business and I like the people,” he said. “I’ll keep going until I get tired. I’ve got a son and daughter up here who would like to keep it going. I get asked all the time if I will ever sell the business, and I don’t know. I really don’t care anything about retiring. When you retire, that’s the end and between the farm and here, it keeps me busy. I don’t care much about sitting around.”
