Operations

“City hardware store survives despite bigger retail options.” So ran the headline last November in the local newspaper for Pottsville, Pa. (population 14,229). The story focused on the seemingly unlikely survival of Pottsville’s Centre Street Hardware, which had managed to …

Most retailers know there are just some things beyond their control. For those heavily selling building materials and lumber, constant changes in commodities pricing are almost always at the top of that list of variables. Between slowed domestic new-home construction …

Health care is a big topic on every retailer’s mind right now, especially as more elements of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) come to fruition. The ACA comes with plenty of questions: What, in the way of insurance, is a …

When tourists in Siren, Wis., need to get their cabins ready for the winter or opened up in the spring, they know Jenneman’s Hardware Hank will lend a hand. “We’re in a tourist area with a lot of lakes,” manager …

Mario Giannetti wants customers looking for new bathroom fixtures to have a one-of-a-kind shopping experience. With Preston Bathroom Design Centre, they can do just that. The 10,000-square-foot, two-story center, located at Preston Hardware in Ottawa, Ontario, features two floors of …

Over the years your business has grown and become more complex. Your income and expenses are larger now than they were 20 years ago. Today it takes computer hardware, software, passwords and authorizations in order to transfer cash between accounts, …

While holiday sales are the driving focus for retailers as the year comes to a close, the end of the year is also a great time to examine your business and make sure it’s on the right track. Ask yourself …