Hello, as you can probably tell I need help naming my future hardware store. Before I get into the details of the business, let me give a quick guide on the desired name.
The name must use “Ace Hardware” somewhere within the overall name.
The name must not be trendy or a play on words.
The name must not appear cheap. (No “Acme” Ace Hardware names please.)
The name should be easily remembered, so please nothing overly long and complicated.
Hopefully the name can give a feeling of locally owned and operated, or of a mom and pop type store.
The ease of selling the business should not be considered when coming up with the name.
With that out of the way let me discuss the town/area that the store will be located, other local businesses, the average customer, and the overall concept of the store. So let’s get started.
This store will be located in the town of Withee, WI (pop. about 500), which is in the north central part of the state. My family has lived there for three generations and is well known and respected. There are several other towns nearby, the closest being less than a mile away. These are all “farming” towns, since much of the local population lives on or works for a farm in one way or another. Their populations are fairly stable, with a few growing and a few shrinking overall. Ethnic groups in these towns tend to be Germanic, Slavic/Baltic, and Norse. However because of a few area businesses there is an ever growing population of Hispanics (primarily from Mexico) that are moving into the area towns, and especially Withee. Despite different cultural backgrounds there is little to no negative race relations.
As mentioned, this is a farming area. There are several various agri-businesses, including a multi-million dollar agriculture center being built less than 5 miles from the proposed store site. Timber and metals are also large business in town. There are several regional and national businesses located less than 15 miles from the proposed store site as well. A popular area winery is just north of town, and there are a small but growing number of home based businesses. A number of greenhouses carrying your typical plants and vegetables are scattered throughout the area.
In the 80’s and 90’s three separate successful hardware stores were located in/around town, but currently only one remains open. They are Mennonite owned and operated, focusing on agricultural needs. They carry a limited selection of home repair products. This forces the local customer to often shop out of town, often driving 30-45 minutes one way to go to a big box store since other area hardware stores do not carry many of the products they need either. It is easier for them to go to one store verses four when the overall driving distance would be the same. The other two stores closed due to retirement and family medical issues, they were not forced to close due to lack of sales.
Our projected customer base is of three parts. The first is the baby-boomer and older generations. These are people in this area that still fix things instead of replace them. Many are home owners or farm owners, so they are in constant need of basic repair/replacement products. These customers tend to be very loyal to the places that give them the best service. They are willing to pay more for a quality product that will last over buying something cheap that will break within a year.
Our second primary customer is the new home owner. In this area they are usually 30 years or older. They tend to be the weekend warrior types; those that tackle big projects over the weekend. During the work week they want to get in and out of the store quickly for the least amount of money. They don’t care about quality as much as they do price. However if your products consistently fail they will let everyone else know about it. High quality store brands are a must.
The final customer that we expect to see daily is the contractor/business owner/property owner. These people are always in a hurry. They have deadlines to meet and bids to come under. If you don’t carry what they need they will no longer shop with you. Taking a small profit loss by giving them discounts is usually expected. However the volume they buy in, as well as being seen using your products, often makes up for it in the long run. Again, high quality products at a low price are required to satisfy this group.
After researching every national and regional supplier we have chosen to go with Ace Hardware. They are a very well-known and respected hardware store brand. It also helps that I have experience working at an Ace Hardware so I am familiar with their pricing and product range. Our store is planned to have between 10,000 and 12,000 square feet of sales floor. We will have an extended range of hardware products covering the entire price range, from inexpensive “home owner” and “contractor” brands all the way up to “professional” quality name brands. Our paint department will also carry the same ranges of prices/quality.
A large rental area for basic tools and equipment will be available to the public. We will also have a service area for warranty repairs on products we sell. There will be your typical hardware store services such as key cutting, glass cutting, blade sharpening, window re-screening, etc. A seasonal greenhouse that is open from Spring-Fall will carry unique and heirloom plans and vegetables. One large classroom will be available to local groups free of charge, and will be used to help train our employees throughout the year. Each employee will receive and average of 30 hours of training per year to ensure the highest in customer service and product knowledge.
Within the store there will be a large selection of outdoor living products and sporting goods (hunting and fishing), with future expansion into firearms sales. A locally owned and operated jewelry store will be located within the overall building. They specialize in custom hand crafted jewelry and have a growing loyal customer base.
Our building will be LEED certified yet still appear to “belong” in the area. This building will be just outside of city limits, and within visual distance to two important state highways, one going East-West and one going North-South.
Since it is easy for customers to travel the 30-45 minutes to a big box store, we will have to focus on quality products and above average customer service. We cannot afford to go toe-to-toe in pricing with a big box store. We also plan on holding several events throughout the year to help build community.
Okay, enough about the background stuff, right? I have asked friend and family for their ideas and suggestions for names. Since we will be a branded store we are required to use the words “Ace Hardware” within our name. Example: Blackhawk Ace Hardware, Walsh’s Ace Hardware of La Crosse, etc. Other than that, as long as the co-op agrees, nearly anything goes. That being said I do have a few limitations that I wish to add. I stated them in the beginning but here they are again:
The name must use “Ace Hardware” somewhere within the overall name.
The name must not be trendy or a play on words.
The name must not appear cheap. (No “Acme” Ace Hardware names please.)
The name should be easily remembered, so please nothing overly long and complicated.
Hopefully the name can give a feeling of locally owned and operated, or of a mom and pop type store.
The ease of selling the business should not be considered when coming up with the name.
After getting feedback from those in my social circle that could help me, I am now reaching out to you…strangers that I have never met in my life. I would like your opinions on the names suggested so far, and any other suggestions you have.
Here is what has been suggested to me in order of responses:
1) Ray’s Ace Hardware
This is my first name, and it is an easy name to remember for a store. I find it a bit boring though, and while I will be the sole owner of the business I’m not sold on the idea of this name. Maybe you can change that?
2) Petke Ace Hardware
This is my family’s last name, so it is already recognized in the area. It is also easy to tie in with other businesses we currently operate.
3) Withee Ace Hardware
This name is an obvious choice since it is the name of the town the store will be located in. Unfortunately if we ever expand into other towns we would need to change the name of each store. This makes the store feel “local”. While many hardware stores do this, I am not always for it. To me it seems…generic. What are your thoughts?
4) Cloverbelt Ace Hardware
This is the name of the schools districts sports conference. It is used for other area businesses since school sports are a big thing in this area of WI. The downside is you are limited to a certain area of the state for future expansion; otherwise the name loses its meaning. The name would be unique in areas outside of this region of the state though.
The name of the school mascot (Blackhawks) cannot be used for several reasons, despite my desire to use it. The main reason is that there is already another Ace Hardware (in a different state) that goes by that name (Blackhawk Ace Hardware), and they are very well known in the hardware business. It would be a poor strategy to use their name or anything similar since online searches would likely bring their webpage up as well. We want customers to be able to find us easily online.
So if you have managed to stay awake this far, and are still with me… What are your thoughts, ideas, and suggestions? Any and all help is greatly appreciated!
Ray
