Industry News

Despite the cold weather in Minneapolis this past weekend, United Hardware retailers were thinking about the warmer weather as they worked the market floor at the United Hardware Spring & Summer Buying Market, held Jan. 9-11 at the Minneapolis Convention …

Consumer confidence increased in December, rising nearly 14 percent from December 2013, according to recent research. The Surveys of Consumers from data providers Thomson Reuters and the Institute for Social Research shows that consumer confidence in the national economy was higher in December …

For home fashion, expect 2015 to bring in natural and subtle colors and textures integrated with a modern ambiance. That’s according to home improvement and real estate information company Zillow Digs, which recently recommended five home design trends to keep an eye out for in …

A 90-year-old worker at a True Value store in Wisconsin is still on the job. Al Hutterer has been a part of the team at Puhl’s True Value for more than 30 years, and he’s still at it. He took a job …

When customers are in the market to upgrade household plumbing products, many of them hope to reduce their water bills long term. As more products are made with water conservation in mind, retailers can lead inquiring customers to products that …

To download a PDF of this full story click here and visit hardwareretailing.com/plumbing-selling-guide to download the Plumbing Selling Guide and full-page water fact sheet. When you think about all of the categories within a home improvement store where technology has had an impact, plumbing may …

After a successful holiday season, retailers are re-evaluating their strategic plans and determining how to keep consumers engaged in the coming months. Many retailers have used and are continuing to use deep discounts as promotions that they hope will keep customers engaged …

When big box retailers first became popular options for consumers, the term big box fit due to store layout and size. Recently, however, many popular big box retailers have been trying to reduce size and introduce smaller versions of their stores. Developing micro-sized …