News

Menards founder John Menard Jr. is the wealthiest person in the state of Wisconsin, according to the Milwaukee Sentinel Journal. The newspaper reports that Menard’s net worth is $9.9 billion according to Forbes’ list of the 400 richest people in America. Eau Claire, Wisconsin, …

Wallace Hardware Inc., the wholesale distributor based in Morristown, Tennessee, celebrated 95 years of serving independent retailers at its recent fall market, held Oct. 11-13 in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. To celebrate its long history and its commitment to American retailers, …

The 2017 Do it Best Fall Market kicked off Friday, Oct. 13 in Indianapolis with a refreshed focus on lumber and building materials and a program to help retailers be successful in the expanding smart home market. The Fort Wayne, Indiana-based co-op …

Cottin’s Hardware & Rental in Lawrence, Kansas, starts the fall season off each year with a scarecrow building contest to raise money for local schools. Several years ago, a customer approached store owner Linda Cottin with the idea. “Our customer …

John Venhuizen, Ace Hardware president and CEO, recently took questions from Hardware Retailing about the co-op’s purchase of The Grommet, an e-commerce startup company. Ace announced the purchase Oct. 3. Hardware Retailing (HR): Why did Ace purchase a majority stake in The Grommet?  John Venhuizen (JV): There …

Sears Canada Inc. will liquidate its assets and begin to “wind down” after its board rejected a business plan proposed by the company’s top executive, The Wall Street Journal reports. The board’s decision to liquidate most of the Canadian retailer’s …

Edward Lampert, CEO of Sears Holdings, has loaned the company an additional $100 million, the Chicago Tribune reports. Sears borrowed the money from affiliates of ESL Investments, Lampert’s hedge fund, which also agreed to lend the company up to $100 million more …

Big-box home improvement retailers Lowe’s and The Home Depot each recently opened warehouses in the Houston area to help meet demand for building materials following Hurricane Harvey, reports the Houston Chronicle. According to the newspaper, Lowe’s signed a lease on a 244,000-square-foot …