With a unique origin story and process for creating hardware, Rocky Mountain Hardware is a staple in the Sun Valley business scene. Get to know Rocky Mountain Hardware, from accessories and custom pieces to creating a life in the valley.

Rocky Mountain Hardware

Back in 1994, there weren’t many options for local hardware in the Wood River Valley. Mark Nickum ran a local door and window company in the Valley at the time and found he kept getting requests from clients looking for hardware for the doors and windows he was selling. Though there were a few options, there weren’t many. Luckily for Rocky Mountain Hardware, Mark decided to capitalize on this gap in the market and began messing around with metals on his own to create hardware for the doors and windows he sold. He landed on bronze as a high-quality metal and started working with a local friend at a foundry to create unique designs. As Mark received more and more requests, he realized he had something good going here and formed, along with his wife Patsy, Rocky Mountain Hardware (RMH).

Next year will be RMH’s 30^th anniversary, and while their offerings and operations have grown over the years, the spirit of this local company hasn’t changed a bit. As business increased, Mark began working with a larger foundry in Blackfoot, which RMH purchased 15 years ago. RMH also built a primary machining and finishing plant in Shoshone after outgrowing their original space; the business has always been located on Airport Way in Hailey but now that office is used for finishing at the corporate office.

RMH started by doing hardware and accessories and, over time, moved into cabinet hardware, plumbing, and lighting, evolving along with customers’ requests. “We’re always adding new products because you have to stay relevant in the marketplace, have something to talk about and something new that gives designers who use us over and over something to use for projects,” says Christian Nickum, Mark and Patsy’s son who took over the company over 20 years ago. “We are constantly introducing new products.”

In addition to the three locations for business and manufacturing (Hailey, Blackfoot, and Shoshone) RMH has two company-owned showrooms in Ketchum and Jackson Hole and also distributes through hundreds of other showrooms around the world. With such success, RMH could have left the Valley for bigger pastures long ago, but it was important to the Nickums, who are originally from Idaho Falls and have been in the Valley for decades, to keep the company based here and live here with their community.

“That is of the utmost importance to us, that we maintain the lifestyle and the sustainability of living locally,” says Christian. “We want to live here and raise our families and we love being one of the best employers in the valley year after year, and that’s true to our core and we don’t see that changing.”