United States
Larger hardware stores may sell small amounts of building supplies including lumber, flooring, roofing materials and fencing.
There may be fewer hardware stores in the U.S. now than in years past, but according to the U.S. Census Bureau, there were still 14,300 hardware stores in the U.S. in 2005, employing on average 10 employees each. Even in the face of competition from large chain stores (commonly referred to as big-box or destination hardware stores, e.g., The Home Depot, Lowe's and Menards) new hardware stores in the U.S. are still opening all the time.
In the U.S. there are four major nationwide wholesale suppliers to hardware stores. All four report more than $1 billion (US Dollars) in sales annually. Three of them operate as retailers' cooperatives: Do It Best Corp, from Fort Wayne Indiana, True Value company from Chicago Illinois and Ace Hardware from Oakbrook Illinois. Hardware store owners purchase stock in these suppliers and are "members" and "owners" as well as customers. A hardware store may choose to include the name of the cooperative in the advertised name of the store.
The fourth nationwide supplier is Orgill, Inc., a traditional wholesale organization that does not operate as a cooperative.
Hardware stores also purchase from a variety of regional wholesalers and specialty manufacturers. Regional wholesalers in the Distribution America cooperative are Blish-Mize, Emery-Waterhouse, Florida Hardware, Handy Hardware, HDW, Inc, House-Hasson Hardware, Jensen Distribution Services, Monroe Hardware, and United Hardware. Other retailers' cooperatives are PRO Group and Val-Test Distributors. Manufacturers include Black & Decker, Ingersoll Rand, Masco, Rubbermaid and Weber.
Some hardware stores operate rental businesses as part of the primary business, and rent for public use construction tools and/or party supplies. The major hardware cooperatives provide brand name rental advertising and support for hardware store owners including Just Ask Rental, Do It Best Rental, Grand Rental Station and Taylor Rental.
Elwood Adams Hardware of Worcester, Massachusetts claims to be the oldest operating hardware store in the United States, having begun business in 1782.
Read more about this topic: Hardware Store
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