A Q&A with Abbe Will about the housing market Abbe Will is a research associate and associate project director of the Remodeling Futures Program for the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University. Hardware Retailing spoke to Will about …
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Small Businesses Remain Optimistic
A Q&A with Holly Wade about the economy Holly Wade is the executive director of the NFIB Research Center, where she conducts original research and studies public policy effects on small businesses. She produces NFIB’s monthly Small Business Economic Trends …
Read More »Canadian Retailers See Chaotic Rebound
The Canadian retail hardware industry has weathered similar conditions to its southern neighbors through much of 2020. But before the pandemic, sales by the industry overall were facing negative growth at the end of 2019 for the first time since …
Read More »Monitoring the Market: Q4 2020
Monitoring market trends in consumer sentiment, home improvement rates and construction figures can help you anticipate emerging opportunities for your business. Use the tables below to get a deeper understanding of a few of the forces affecting independent home improvement. …
Read More »Market Measure 2020: The Industry’s Annual Report
Years from now, when our children and grandchildren are studying history, there will almost certainly be a chapter in their virtual textbooks that focuses on 2020. One might easily argue that 2020 will be remembered among the most influential years …
Read More »Charting 2020’s Biggest Holiday Sales Trends
Research firm CBRE recently issued its outlook for the 2020 holiday shopping season. Featuring insight on the U.S. economy, new shopper habits and global insights, the data is a clear guide to the trends home improvement retailers should be on …
Read More »Canada Aims to Ban Plastic Bags
The Canadian government has announced plans to ban an array of common plastic products by the end of 2021, including single-use shopping bags common in brick-and-mortar retail. It’s all in an effort to produce zero plastic waste by 2030. In …
Read More »Understanding the Twists and Turns of 2020 Retail Sales
Despite uncertainty early in the year, retail sales have remained strong across sectors, including historic sales for home improvement (NAICS 444) and nonstore companies (NAICS 454) like Amazon. Referencing retail sales for September, National Retail Federation president and CEO Matthew …
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