Back to School With Soda Stream & Shop Locally With Matty K's

Matty K's Grand Opening Celebration April 2012

Soda Stream is one of our daily favs for saving the earth & saving money!    **Check out our original photo filled Soda Stream feature from back in 2009 here.**

Our favorite local, Chicago place to buy Soda Stream syrup refills, tanks, and new starter sets is Matty K's hardware.  These theatre peeps, Matt & Laura, are parents to a rockin' little girl and work in set building and costuming in Chi-Town's theatre scene.   Shop locally and show 'em some love.   Matty K's Hardware is in Lincoln Square at 4874 N. Lincoln Ave. (at Ainslie) in Chicago and is open 6 a.m. – 8 p.m. Monday – Friday and 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. Saturday – Sunday.  For more information call 773-654-1347.

Check out our past photo features here--free pot painting and seed planting at Matty K's.

Grand Opening 4-2012 Details 

Matty K’s was founded by lifelong Chicago resident Matt Kollar, who has a decade of experience working as a scenic carpenter and technical director in Chicago and opened Left Wing Scenic in 2003 to provide technical and design services to theaters throughout the city. He quickly found that he would have to travel from store to store, or search online for certain products that were not available in Chicago. To remedy this, Kollar began laying the foundation for Matty K’s Hardware more than two years ago to provide Chicago’s theater community with a one-stop shop for all of their needs, as well as apply his expertise to both theatrical and home projects.

A family-owned and operated business, Matty K’s is dedicated to serving all members of the Chicago community. Monthly workshops are offered to all ages free of charge with seasonal projects including making a chalkboard wall calendar, bike tuning, seed planting and more. A dedicated kids’ area in the store makes it easy for parents to shop or spend time working with experts in the design center, who are available to help with home projects, painting and more.

“We have been working for more than two years to bring this store to the community and we are thrilled to be in business in Lincoln Square,” says Matt Kollar. “Matty K’s is dedicated to a high level of customer service and personal attention from employees who are experts in their areas. We also wanted to serve theater designers with a one- stop shop that carries all of the specialty items that weren’t necessarily available in Chicago before.”

As part of its community focus, Matty K’s also offers a loyalty program. Customers can choose from charitable organizations enrolled in the program and a percentage of their purchases will go to the organization as reward points. The organization can then redeem these rewards toward their purchases at Matty K’s. Organizations wishing to participate in the loyalty program can get more information by calling 773-654-1347.

A Rogers Park native and graduate of Loyola University, Matt Kollar is the founder of Left Wing Scenic and Matty K’s Hardware. He has a decade of experience as a scenic carpenter and technical director and has worked with several local theaters, including Steppenwolf, Goodman, Chopin, Remy Bumppo and The House Theatre of Chicago.  

Kollar runs Matty K’s with his wife and business manager, Laura Kollar. The pair met at Loyola University’s Theater Department and have been married six years. A costume designer since 2003, Laura has worked withTheater Wit, Pegasus Players, Lookingglass Theatre Co., Chicago Shakespeare, North Park University, Northeastern Illinois University and she is an Artistic Ensemble Member with Adventure Stage Chicago.  

Matt and Laura have a 1 year old daughter, Darlene, who is the real boss of Matty K's.   ChiIL Mama spoke with the couple about setting up an interview and hope to have that up soon as part of our ongoing exploration in How Creatives Parent and How Parents Create.    Click the link to check out our Pinterest Board with all the interviews.
About Matty K’s Hardware
Matty K’s is designed for a wide range of patrons, from those with no experience, to your average DIY-ers, to expert carpenters. The store carries a complete array of seasonal items, paint, lawn and garden supplies and tools. There are also two full aisles dedicated to materials for theatrical scenic and lighting designers, including Jaxsan foam coat, specialty rigging supplies, powder coated black aircraft cable, cheeseboroughs, specialty tapes and more.