Meet The Owner: Rick Miller, Park Hardware

Rick Miller Jr. grew up as an Eagle Scout, a Green Hornets athlete, a member of the Severna Park High School marching band and a fourth-generation heir to his family’s business, Zeskind’s Hardware & Millwork.

Now the owner of both Zeskind’s and Park Hardware, which he acquired from Clement Hardware and expanded in April 2023, Miller spends his time serving the community and brainstorming ways to support Scouts, athletes, musicians, and the local businesses that make the greater Severna Park area a tight-knit community.

Growing Up In Severna Park

Miller lived in the Riverdale neighborhood and then moved to Chartwell in 1984 as he attended kindergarten at Benfield Elementary School. As a member of Troop 855, he installed benches around a walkway at Sandy Point State Park for his Eagle Scout project.

“It was probably one of the first times I had to run a project, and it was the basis for my understanding of how to manage a project and manage people,” Miller said. “I reached out to businesses and negotiated pricing. So, I take it seriously when a Scout asks for support, and any way I can help, I want to do that. But they have to come to me, not have their parents ask.”

Miller was active playing Green Hornets sports, especially soccer, and competing for the St. Andrews swim team.

“I kept waking up early during summer mornings for swim team and that helped with discipline,” he said.

He particularly enjoyed one event in which sponsors donated to cystic fibrosis research. Swimmers raised 25 cents per lap and swam until they could no longer contribute. He also participated in food drives.

“Every organization I was involved in, there was always a fundraising or community aspect,” he said.

At Severna Park High School, Miller had a great experience with the marching band. An alto saxophone player, he became squad leader or section leader, and he was first chair by senior year.

1. Thomas Powell directed the band during Miller’s days as a high school student.

“He was a very big, influential person in my life,” Miller said. “He ran it like a military band. He pushed manners. You either loved or hated it, but he was beloved by many.”

During high school, Miller also spent time at Zeskind’s in Baltimore, learning how to repair windows and screens, cut keys, run the family business and help customers. His great-grandfather started the business — and his parents, Rick Sr. and Deborah, took it to the next level — but it remained a “tiny corner hardware store.”

“There were no aisles and there was no ability to wander around,” Miller said. “We had to walk up to every customer. They would have a problem, and we would help them come up with a solution.”

Miller’s only stint living away from Anne Arundel County came during college. He attended Clemson University in South Carolina, changed his major to business, and then transferred to Salisbury University on Maryland’s Eastern Shore, and completed a degree in finance.

Although he never worked for a big corporation, Miller held several jobs.

“I wanted to get experience outside our family business,” Miller said. “Otherwise, I would have had no reference … so I was a restaurant cook and waited tables.”

Miller worked at Old West Steakhouse in Salisbury, Riviera Restaurant in Clemson, and Annapolis Cinema Grill.

“I learned to manage this flood, this rush, and had to prepare ahead to be organized,” Miller said. “It was knowing there is a minimum expectation, but then wanting to blow people away. Now, I make sure to show appreciation, tip generously and support local restaurants. We have a great selection in Severna Park.”

After college, Miller worked in construction and homebuilding for Kaine Homes, and then worked in the China procurement program for Tenon, a New Zealand producer of wood products.

“It was a pretty serious job for me because they entrusted me with a lot of responsibility. We were responsible for whole shiploads of containers,” Miller said. “I think it was really rewarding, especially to take a pause from the family business for seven to eight years after college to see how other companies work.”

Growing Zeskind’s And Park Hardware

Miller joined Zeskind’s full-time in 2008 when the millwork side had seven or eight employees. By 2016, it grew to 30 employees.

“I was selling, quoting, delivering and handling finances for my part of the business,” Miller said.

He became full owner in 2019. One year later, Zeskind’s acquired another longstanding business, the Landover-based Lamar & Wallace, which formed in 1935. Zeskind’s will turn 100 years old in 2025.

Zeskind's and Park Hardware employ about 50 people total. Zeskind’s has a retail and showroom as part of Park Hardware in Severna Park, and its Landover manufacturing facility hangs 200 doors a day and makes custom pieces by hand.

“We’re not a lumberyard,” Miller said. “Our focus is on millwork, fine hardware and millwork hardware.”

The business partners with Historic Annapolis, Maryland Historic Trust and other groups to complete tax credit projects for historic buildings, whether the job is matching the moulding on the interior of a house or removing a brass porthole and putting it on an old door.

Anne Arundel County residents will also recognize Zeskind’s work from the entry doors at Park Tavern and Donnelly’s Dockside, the custom glass entry door with a logo at Cantler’s Riverside Inn, and from a tilt-and-turn window at Acme Bar and Grill.

Park Hardware and Zeskind’s are ingrained in the community and Miller hopes that never changes.

“We’re as local as it gets and we’re asking for support, but we give in return, with excellent service and being as competitive as we can with pricing because everyone is feeling the impact (in their pockets) right now,” he said.

“Am I going to compete on that DeWalt tool that Home Depot has a boatload of? Probably not, but we try to be competitive on all the basic needs. We can save you time, save you fuel, and we have experts here you can talk to so you will find what you need and be out in five minutes.”

He wants Anne Arundel County residents to know the impact of supporting their local businesses. Park Hardware is a member of the Greater Severna Park and Arnold Chamber of Commerce and supports its events including Shoptoberfest, held in October, and the Fourth of July parade.

“Look around at where you are shopping,” Miller said. “Have a mental checklist. Are they a chamber member? Are they supporting local groups?

“I live four miles from the store, in Arnold. My kids go to school locally and my employees live here. We want Park Hardware to represent a local business that gives back to the community.”

Park Hardware supports Scouts, schools and youth groups, and nonprofits including Stef Ripple and Katherine’s Light.

Miller and his wife, Joni, have a 14-year-old daughter, Chloe, and a 12-year-old son, Jax. It’s surreal for Miller to live, work and contribute to the thriving community he has always called home.

He plans to continue improving Park Hardware’s services and product offerings while supporting other local businesses.

“Our hardware store was a rowhouse in Baltimore. We would stop at Clement Hardware so we didn’t have to drive to Baltimore when we needed a nut or bolt,” Miller said. “It’s like a dream come true to be able to run this store.”

Park Hardware is located at 500 Ritchie Highway, Suite A, in Severna Park. Hours are 7:00am-6:00pm Monday through Friday, 8:00am-6:00pm Saturday and 9:00am-5:00pm Sunday. Have questions? Call 410-647-4611, email info@parkhardware.com, or visit www.parkhardware.com.