A Fruitful Convergence Builds Ace Place In Atlanta
At a time when retail vacancies are soaring, Ace Hardware, the largest independent hardware chain in the nation, is making a major play in metro Atlanta.
The “helpful hardware place” is opening four stores this year in Home Depot’s headquarters town, after opening four stores last year.
“Atlanta seems like it’s always been a good area for us,” said Tom Knox, director of retail development for the Oak Brook, Ill., company. “That’s funny, as it’s Home Depot’s backyard.”
Unlike its big-box rivals, Ace grows only through franchising. Ace is a wholesale cooperative, similar to rival True Value.
Owned by their independent retailers, the chains cooperatively buy inventory through their home offices. Home Depot and Lowe’s, by contrast, don’t franchise.
Ace stores also are more about repairing home sweet home than doing a jumbo renovation.
In Canton, northwest of Atlanta, Bob Calvanese opened his first Ace store at 100 Ridge Road, in a new retail development north of I-575.
His store has an eclectic assortment of goods – from wine-themed gifts to garbage cans to weedkillers.
