Recent Features, News & Products from Hardware Connection
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Special Section: Winter Products Report
For all the sophistication available to forecast and manage inventory, few hardware categories remain as dependent on one uncontrollable variable as winter products. When winter shows up, demand can move quickly. National Retail Federation and Planalytics data showed just how quickly during February 2025. With the coldest February temperatures since 2022 and the most snowfall…
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2026 IHI Conference Recap: Ideas, Connections and a Look Ahead
Retailers arrived at the 2026 Independent Home Improvement Conference (IHI Conference) with plenty to talk about. Technology is advancing quickly. Consumers remain cautious. Labor, margins and operating costs continue to pressure businesses. Meanwhile, the industry’s largest competitors are investing heavily in technology, services and the pro customer. But the mood at the JW Marriott Orlando…
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Courage to Mess With Success
Preserving a family business sometimes means being willing to change it. For three generations, the Falcone family has guided Rocky’s Ace Hardware by recognizing that even a successful business still needs to evolve. Each generation built on what came before while adapting to what customers would need next. Founder Rocco “Rocky” J. Falcone established the…
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AI-First Platform Rundoo Announces $48 Million in Financing
Technology company Rundoo recently announced it has raised $30 million in Series B financing led by Battery Ventures, with participation from existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners and CRV, bringing the company’s total funding to $48 million. Rundoo provides an AI-first system of record keeping for independent supply stores, supporting the operations of vital small businesses that serve communities…
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Q2 Big-Box Earnings Point to Cautious Consumers, Growing Pro Competition
Second-quarter results from the home improvement industry’s big-box retailers offered independent dealers a mixed but revealing picture of the market: Customers are still spending, but they remain selective about where—and how much. Home Depot and Lowe’s both reported positive comparable sales, while Tractor Supply’s comparable sales declined. Across the three reports, however, several common themes…
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Retailer2Retailer: A Cooler Community Starts With Small Change
By Sean Grant Every summer, someone walks up to my store’s register with a bag of potting soil or a handful of screws, hears the cashier ask whether they’d like to round up to benefit our Fan Drive and decides to add 37 cents to the total. By itself, that decision barely registers. Together, hundreds…
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Q&A Thought Leadership: Strengthening the Fastener Department
Eric Rohrschneider has spent more than two decades in the fastener industry, holding leadership roles in product management, manufacturing and marketing. As vice president of marketing for Kalamazoo, Michigan based Midwest Fastener, he works closely with retailers to develop merchandising strategies, optimize category performance and help independent dealers build more productive fastener departments. In this…
