Lindsey Thompson

Doing its part to promote growth in the skilled trades and the independent home improvement channel, Hampton Lumber, which has nine locations in Oregon, Washington and British Columbia, has partnered with Girls Build.

A new partnership is brewing at Hardware Sales in Bellingham, Washington, as the operation has started partnering with local breweries to sell beer in the store. Brookelyn McClellan, operations and marketing coordinator, says the company started selling beer a few months ago and so far, it’s been a fun project to work on.

At Kimps Ace Hardware in Green Bay, Wisconsin, employees receive some extra love and recognition thanks to employee spotlights on the store’s Facebook page.

The kickoff of the North American Hardware and Paint Association’s (NHPA) highly anticipated pilot program “Navigating Cash Flow: A Roadmap to True Financial Freedom” is fast approaching. Designed to empower independent hardware and paint retailers with the knowledge and insights they need to improve cash flow, this intensive two-day course will be held in Indianapolis on October 15-16.

As another outlet for promoting growth and the success of the True Value brand, the company has started the process of owning and operating retail stores. True Value purchased its first store in Palatine, Illinois, in March 2024.

With a focus on what’s next and best practices, the True Value 2024 Fall Reunion in Orlando brought together retailers from across the U.S. and around the world for several days of product discovery, education and networking.

Along with marking 60 years in business, Home Hardware dealer-owners had a lot to celebrate during the Home Hardware Homecoming 2024, which took place from Sept. 12-14 in Toronto, Canada. Homecoming provided a chance for networking, product discovery and plenty of deals.

As the co-owner of six Ace Hardware stores in the San Francisco Bay area, Michelle Leopold is used to facing challenges head on. Tragically, in 2019, Leopold endured the most difficult challenge of her life—losing her 18-year-old son Trevor to illicit “Dirty 30” Oxycodone that contained a lethal amount of fentanyl.

I recently had a deep conversation with a peer who boasts over five decades of experience—he’s been working in hardware since before I was born. Despite our experience and age gap, I was amazed at how similar our struggles are with the varying personalities, work ethics and diverse leadership styles. “Retail is detail,” he would repeat as we sought solutions to the day’s new challenges.

Back in 2008, Linda Cottin, owner of Cottin’s Hardware & Rental in Lawrence, Kansas, was approached by the local newspaper to write DIY articles on various home improvement topics under the title Fix It Chick. In the 10 years she contributed to the newspaper, she wrote more than 400 articles, which now live on her hardware store’s website.