Operations

Between constant price changes from tariffs, rising labor costs, a soft housing market and dropping consumer confidence, to say last year was challenging for retailers would be an understatement. While they can’t control outside factors, there are ways retailers can …

By Darrell Baker While many hardware retailers have been selling plants for a long time, some have just started recently and others have avoided the extra work and complexity of this category. Whatever the case for your operation, live goods …

As it continually strives to make independent home improvement retailers better and more profitable, the North American Hardware and Paint Association (NHPA) is leaning into technology to bring efficient and time-saving training offerings to the channel.  The new RetailWise program …

By Steve Payne, Editor-in-Chief, Hardlines Inc. The health of the retail hardware and home improvement industry in Canada had its ups and downs both during and following the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, industry sales declined by 3.7%, and in 2024 …

In life, comparison is the thief of joy, but when it comes to business, comparison is a key component to evaluate progress and gauge success. In the independent home improvement industry, running a gap analysis is one of those tasks …

A lumber and building materials category is a great addition to a hardware operation, providing a new source of revenue and opportunities for growth. Many retailers have faced difficulty in this category recently, as significant tariffs on lumber and building …

Facing a life-changing list of obstacles and challenges while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps, Scott Morath uses the toolkit of skills he gained during his time in military service in his leadership role today in the independent channel. Morath’s …

Market Measure Evolution As you dive into this year’s Market Measure report, things might look a bit different than they have in the past, particularly when you browse the size of market numbers and the market breakdown.  The numbers themselves …