To view a PDF of this story, click here. In an interview with Hardware Retailing, Jim Robisch of The Farnsworth Group discusses how retailers must not lose sight of the importance of in-store customer experiences while trying to compete against …

Millions of U.S. households own animals, and on any given day, these owners are in the market for everything from dog sweaters to pet-friendly home renovations. According to the National Association of Realtors, nearly 60 percent of U.S. households own …

Ace Hardware Corp. plans to restructure its East Coast distribution network—a move that includes closing both of its Emery-Waterhouse warehouses and building a new 1.1 million-square-foot facility, according to Ace. The consolidation of Ace’s distribution facilities is coming after a rigorous analysis of the …

Lowe’s is continuing to expand in Canada with Lowe’s stores, as well as with locations branded with Canadian retailer RONA’s name. Lowe’s confirmed this month that it has opened two new RONA stores in Quebec. The stores are located in the cities of …

Online and big-box retailers have added another factor to the competition for workers: new and expanded warehouses that pay more than minimum wage for low-skilled jobs. “Retailers and logistics companies have been opening warehouses at a record pace to ensure online orders reach …

Store closures have become a growing trend, with big boxes such as Walmart, J.C. Penney, Sears, Kmart and others shuttering or planning to close scores of locations. The reason is neither declining retail sales, nor entirely because of e-commerce, The Atlantic magazine …

Amazon now charges state sales tax in every state that has one. That means, as of April 1, Amazon started paying state sales taxes in Hawaii, Idaho, Maine and New Mexico, CNN Money reports. The only states where the company …

Ace Hardware Corp. has hired Grainger executive Mark Spanswick to be president and general manager of Ace Wholesale Holdings LLC. Spanswick, 48, spent 27 years working for industrial supplier W.W. Grainger, where he served in a variety of leadership roles. Grainger is a publicly traded company …