Michelle Overbeck loves to see the enthusiasm on the faces of children when a truck from Big Creek Lumber pulls up in front of their school. Overbeck is the marketing manager for the company, which has five locations in central …

Click here to download the PDF of this story. It’s a story nearly every retailer can tell. You need to fill a spot on your team and, after sifting through several applicants, you find the one you think will get …

Before you start investing a lot of time and resources in vetting a prospective employee, it’s helpful to know as much as you can about their fitness for the job. One way to find out more is to give applicants …

As spring shopping starts to heat up, make sure you’re taking full advantage of the season with an effective merchandising strategy. While having the correct mix of products in the store is important, you still could miss sales if those …

Click the image above to view a PDF of this story. A boost in sales, a crowd in the store, lots of goodwill toward your business—there are many reasons why you might host a special event. These events offer a …

Curiosity is a powerful motivator. So, when Neil Schneider started putting rebus, or pictogram, puzzles in the front window of his store, J&M Hardware & Locksmiths in New York City, he hoped they would at least make customers curious enough …

A Q&A With NRHA’s Katie McHone-Jones One of the biggest events on the North American Retail Hardware Association’s (NRHA) calendar is the NRHA All-Industry Conference, held in conjunction with the National Hardware Show®. This year, the conference happens May 8-10 …

Kendall and Alexandra Crosby, owners of Kendall’s Ace Hardware in St. Paul, Minnesota, view their hardware store a little like a movie set. They want to engage their customers, but they also want to entertain them. “We’ve gotten a lot …