Louisiana Hardware Store Celebrates a Century of Service

This year, Louisiana-based Ward Hardware, celebrates its 100th anniversary, achieving a significant milestone for both its own history and the surrounding community.

In 1925, John Ward opened John Ward Hardware on Lee Street in Alexandria, Louisiana. At that time, John Ward Hardware carried a variety of product offerings, including bicycles and horse equipment. The store also played a particularly important role in the Second World War.

“During World War II, the store served as a ration point for ammunition,” says Catherine Weatherford, Ward Hardware’s back office manager. “We actually have a picture in our store of a lot of people lined up outside the old store waiting to get their rations.”

John passed the store down to his son, Max, in the 1950s, who later, keeping the store in the family, brought his nephew, Clint Ward, onto the team. Clint purchased the business and became the owner in 1985.

Clint opened a second John Ward Hardware location in 1990, while also maintaining the original Lee Street store. In 2000, the store expanded by merging its two existing locations and purchasing a former post office building on Metro Drive to add additional space.

In 2020, John Ward Hardware was passed on to the fourth generation of Wards when Taylor, Clint’s son, bought the business, renaming it to Ward Hardware

Today, Ward Hardware has about a dozen employees who hold over 150 years of combined hardware retail experience.

“We have some very knowledgeable, very experienced people on our team,” Weatherford says. “We have a mix of full-time and part-time employees, and we’re super grateful to have them all here with us.”

Ward’s product selection spans from well-known brands to locally made products. Local honey, a Louisiana brand of sweet tea and an Alexandria author’s books and merchandise fill the store’s shelves along with large selections of hardware and outdoor products.

“We try to keep that local touch to help promote the locals in our community,” Weatherford says. “There’s just so many times we hear our customers say, ‘Oh, I didn’t know y’all had that’, or ‘I knew I should have come here first, because I’ve looked everywhere else and I couldn’t find it.’”

Community involvement is also a significant aspect of the Ward Hardware legacy. This spring, the store held a 100th birthday celebration that included a ribbon cutting ceremony hosted by the local  Central Louisiana Chamber of Commerce.

“Our store participates in the community by providing donations to a lot of the schools, sports teams and different nonprofits throughout the year that are doing fundraisers and auctions,” Weatherford says. “The store does quite a bit to help provide donations whenever we can.”

In addition to being a cornerstone in the Alexandria community, Ward Hardware’s secret to their 100-year legacy is found in their business integrity and care for customers, says Taylor Ward, owner of Ward Hardware.

“The secret to our longevity is twofold,” Ward says. “First, our community involvement gets reciprocated. We’ve got a very loyal customer base that we’ve cultivated through providing solid customer service throughout the years and becoming a trustworthy business. It all comes down to that—just being a trustworthy business where customers feel confident when they come in and see people who they’ve seen for years and who’ve provided them with the correct advice and ways to fix whatever they’re working on.”

The five-year plan for Ward Hardware consists of providing the same excellent service they’re known for.

“In the next few years, if we continue to provide excellent customer service and products that people need, or just continue to keep doing what we’ve been doing, it’s a formula that’s proven right for this long,” Ward says. “We can make updates or do whatever we need to do to keep up with the current environment, but the most important thing is keeping those basic principles.”

Read more about other retailers with benchmark anniversaries in our Milestones section.