Research and Guides

The prices on home improvement products are growing, and so are retailers’ efforts to keep those prices competitive and retain customers. Price continues to be a key factor consumers consider when choosing where to shop. Over the years, product pricing has …

Outdoor living is a growing category for retailers, as more consumers are putting emphasis on their outdoor living areas. Homeowners are renovating and adding to their patios to create entertaining, eating and living spaces that add more functional square footage. To better …

To download a PDF of this story, click here. To download the Outdoor Living Selling Guide, visit hardwareretailing.com/outdoor-resources.  Light Up the Yard and Fire Up the Grill Five Trends Taking Over Outdoor Spaces The backyard has always been recognized as a spot for people to …

Some California retailers’ model for offering each other business feedback inspired this peer critique that Hardware Retailing tested with two retailers in the Midwest. The goal of the project is to provide you with resources and ideas for connecting with and learning from …

“I’ll be brutally honest with you if you’ll be brutally honest with me” is what three retailers in California promised each other when they started visiting each other’s stores to offer feedback. Those retailers started what they call the Pterodactyl …

Retailers know what they want their relationships with sales reps to look like, and their participation in a North American Retail Hardware Association (NRHA) study offers insight into their preferences. About 69 percent of home improvement retailers prefer sales reps to …

The shop-local movement is sweeping neighborhoods and Main Streets across America. Many consumers are starting to understand the benefits small businesses provide their hometowns, and they are shopping at local stores for that reason. Therefore, it is important to share …

Keeping employees motivated and excited about their work is difficult. Some retailers say they have difficulty finding hard-working employees in the first place and then retaining them are even more challenging. So how do retailers find employees and promote job …