Hardware Retailing The Industry's Source for Insights and Information
Promising retailers bigger, better and faster, the Do it Best and True Value 2025 Spring Market has commenced in Orlando. At the Market Kickoff event, Do it Best and True Value CEO Dan Starr welcomed Do it Best members and True Value retailers, sharing his vision for what’s next for the partnership between the two companies.
“This room is filled with the strongest, most committed and most forward-thinking independent dealers in the nation, and your presence here is a testament to the power of what we can accomplish together,” Starr says. “This market is about momentum and taking everything we’ve built—our partnerships, innovations and commitment to growth—and using it to fuel the future.”
Starr touched on what has transpired since True Value filed for bankruptcy last year and Do it Best stepped in to acquire the company’s assets. The outcome created one company—Do it Best Group. They will be running True Value in the short term as a separate entity to focus on the significant turnaround methods needed to make True Value profitable once again, Starr says.
“We found a lot of value in purchasing True Value—a great nationally recognized brand, strong private label brands like EasyCare and Green Thumb, loyal retailer relationships, a larger distribution network and a paint manufacturing facility,” Starr says. “And just as importantly, we believe in the team’s ability to turn around a bankrupt company while optimizing the network of the future.”
Starr outlined the benefits of the partnership between Do it Best and True Value, which includes offering a national brand that he says carries 70% unaided brand recognition, combined purchasing power that can help increase margin opportunities and secure better deals from vendor partners.
“We all know that bringing together two organizations is not a small task, but what we’ve accomplished in just a few short months is nothing short of incredible,” Starr says. “From the moment we closed on the acquisition, we’ve been focused on stabilizing and strengthening True Value while continuing to serve Do it Best (members) with the excellence that they absolutely expect and deserve.”
Jason Stofleth, Do it Best vice president of merchandising, and Justin Hanford, True Value vice president of merchandising, shared updates on merchandising, including an expanded Paint Sundry Solutions Program that will provide retailers with additional options to source paint sundries at competitive prices.
Stofleth says that after Do it Best acquired True Value, fill rates went from 64% to over 90%. The Spring Market will feature more vendors than ever and offer more deals and products with discounts up to 55%. In addition, all retailers will be able to order from any vendor on the market floor.
“This collaboration between Do it Best and True Value is just getting started,” Hanford says. “Our merchandising teams have just begun working side by side, optimizing assortments, streamlining programs and putting the limits of what’s possible for independents. We have one mission in merchandising—driving down our cost of goods and protecting your margins.”
One of the big questions retailers have had is the future of the True Value brand, and True Value senior vice president of marketing Eric Lane addressed some of those questions. Lane shared that the True Value brand is strongest with Generation X and Baby Boomers, and the company is creating strategies to connect with younger customers. Lane says his team will roll out a new marketing campaign at the fall market designed to reconnect with core customers and reach younger demographics.
“We’ve also noticed that our brand consistency has loosened in some areas. Customers should know what to expect when they walk into a True Value store, no matter where they are,” Lane says. “That means a stronger unified brand presence across all locations carrying that name. Our focus is on strengthening and standardizing key elements of our brand.”
Greg Fuller, Do it Best vice president of sales, and Chris Okapal, True Value vice president of sales, shared that two agreements will be available to True Value retailers to buy from Do it Best, a market-only customer agreement and a standard customer agreement.
“Both are designed to give you the flexibility, the purchasing power and the access you need to win,” Fuller says.
