Kayenta welcomes reservation’s first rental store

Posted by Navajo Times | Dec 8, 2016 | Business |

By Chris Burnside
Kayenta Township

KAYENTA, Ariz.

Special to the Times | Chris Burnside
EZ Rent recently opened its doors in Kayenta.

Kayenta Township is about to get a new store. Preparation is underway for EZ Rent to move into the Kayenta Township Town Center, also known as the Old Kayenta Post Office. The 1,984-square-foot office complex will soon have a new tenant, Tommy Barnum, owner of EZ Rent.

Barnum, Currently living in Page, has been there about four years. He says he will be commuting to Kayenta every day. EZ Rent will operate from Monday through Friday and will soon be open on Saturdays as well.

As to why he picked Kayenta, he says, “Kayenta is the heart of the reservation.” There is also another EZ Rent located in Page. Barnum’s plans are in the process of moving all of his customers from Page to Kayenta.

Presently, Kayenta has a few businesses including several restaurants, a grocery store with a full deli and a meat department, an auto parts store, several convenience stores and gas stations. According to Barnum, “There is no other rent-to-own on the reservation, so we are trying to be the first out here right now. We thought, What better place to start than Kayenta?”

The store will be starting with mattresses and few miscellaneous items, electronics, TVs and game systems. “We will be doing some raffles at the first couple of months, probably give away an X-Box, PS4, before Christmas,” Barnum said.

When asked what he thought of Kayenta, and if he thought the move would be promising, he responded, “Yes, I think so, that’s why I jumped on it. I thought it was a growing area; it’s changed quite a bit. So might as well make the jump towards it.”

Having a new business will be advantageous for the community, especially for those that travel to purchase items that are hard to find. Barnum says, “What I’m going to do for locals is do a local discount, and my pricing is already going to be lower than the competitors so really I’m going to be reaching out to everybody to keep them here, instead of going out of town.”