2022 NHPA Young Retailer of the Year

Meet the HONOREES

CELEBRATE THE YOUNG FUTURES OF THE INDUSTRY

Rewarding the Future

See how NHPA recognizes rising stars in the industry through the Young Retailer of the Year program. Learn more at YourNHPA.org/yroty

Future BUILDING THE

MEET THE YOUNG RETAILER OF THE YEAR HONOREES

Each year, the North American Hardware and Paint Association (NHPA) honors the best and brightest in the independent home improvement industry through its Young Retailer of the Year recognition program. This program honors retailers 35 years or younger in the U.S. and Canada who have shown exemplary service to their operations and their communities.

Honorees are chosen based on wide-ranging criteria such as career accomplishments, community involvement, ongoing education within the industry and extracurricular activities. Their operations fit into one of three categories: Under $3 million in annual sales, over $3 million in annual sales and operations with multiple stores.

REGISTER FOR THE VIRTUAL CEREMONY

Don’t miss the Young Retailer of the Year virtual awards ceremony on July 20 at 2 p.m. EST, where we’ll learn more about the honorees and recognize their achievements. Register today at YourNHPA.org/yroty

Kyle moved into the home improvement industry to be able to spend more time with his family.

KYLE ADAIR

MAYCREST HARDWARE, CO-OWNER

Location Savannah, Georgia

Category Under $3 Million in Annual Sales

Maycrest_Hardware

After completing a degree in industrial management from Mercer University in Macon, Georgia, Kyle Adair spent a few years working on private jets and at a local hospital. Before long, the pressures of the job and its hindrance of family time encouraged him to seek change, so in June 2019, Kyle purchased Maycrest Hardware with the help of his in-laws.

Through his in-laws’ propane company, Kyle saw the flexibility a small business would allow him and Maycrest Hardware, Savannah’s oldest existing hardware store, caught his eye.

The store was dated and in need of major updates. Its regular customers were the only source of income, but in late 2018 Kyle started talking with the owner of Maycrest Hardware about a purchase before closing the deal in 2019.

While Kyle had no experience running a hardware store, he excels in creating processes and making anything more efficient. The first step toward restoring the business was fixing the inventory.

Kyle cleared out the dated inventory, holding a yard sale in the parking lot to clear out 175 totes worth of items, which was about 50% of the items that were on the store shelves when he purchased the business. He donated another 15 pallets to Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore.

In September, Kyle counted the remaining products in the entire store by hand and established a point-of-sale (POS) system. After entering all of the products into the system and creating bin tags for every item, the POS system began generating a suggested order for Kyle to track and analyze, saving 24 hours of work a week spent manually ordering products and applying price stickers.

Modernization did not stop there. Kyle replaced the old phone system with voice-over IP phones, walkie-talkies were brought in and the radio zip-tied to the wall was replaced with Do it Best Radio streaming over wireless speakers.

As Kyle worked to improve the store, he also built up his industry education, attending the College of Retail Education (CORE) at Do it Best, studying

“We follow the golden rules of ‘treat others like you want them to treat you’ and ‘love one another.’ We’re a neighborhood store, so we look for any way we can help our community.”

NHPA’s Cost of Doing Business Study, attending markets, reading online industry publications, watching product information videos, working with his vendor representatives and learning from the staff he retained.

In January 2020, Kyle began an overhaul of the entire sales floor, moving every fixture, adding aisle signs and a modern checkout counter, painting the floors and replacing the light bulbs with LED lights, which cut the electric bill in half.

During the remodel, Kyle invested in his inventory, adding more than 11,000 new SKUs to his 6,000-square-foot retail space. Additionally, he repurposed a pole barn to sell outdoor furniture and knocked down a wall that led to storage, allowing him to double his selection of marine supplies and expand the lawn and garden department.

Despite issues with COVID-19, by March 2020 daily transactions rose from 140 to 170, and by April they climbed to 240 before peaking at 260 during the height of the pandemic. The average sales ticket also increased from $16.90 to $26.26.

Kyle continued to improve the operation by launching a website, offering a ship-to-store option, implementing curbside pickup, creating a rental center and repair shop and installing a self-service ice machine and propane refilling station. He also created a customer loyalty rewards program, made gift cards available and added an ECHO showroom, the only one in Savannah, which boasts a margin of 20% and $83,000 in revenue a year.

Sales in Kyle’s first year as owner hit $1.3 million, a 76% increase from the previous year, while in 2021, sales jumped 20%. In the first two years Kyle owned the store, he more than doubled sales and held a healthy margin of 39%, earning the store the title of one of 50 Hardware All-Stars for 2021 by Hardware and Building Supply Dealer.

Through Maycrest Hardware’s success, Kyle strives to give back to the community, participating in the Humane Society’s golf tournament and sponsoring holes for the event, supporting the Lymphoma & Leukemia Society, hosting local Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops at the store for their sales and fundraising and donating excess inventory to Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore. He installed a

Letters to Santa mailbox in the store to make kids’ wishes come true at Christmas, and holds a Fall Festival for the community and supports an organization called EmployAbility that prepares adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities for competitive employment and community integration.

Kyle also serves as a hardware expert for a neighborhood magazine and is a member of the chamber of commerce, embracing any chance to support local entrepreneurs. Kyle and his wife Nancy are heavily involved with their church, facilitating Bible studies in their home with other young families in their neighborhood.

Kyle continues to fine-tune the operations in his store, adding formal policies and procedures to enable the store to run smoothly, even when he is absent, and he has plans in place to reorganize and repave the store’s parking lot to add 20% more spaces and allow for trucks pulling trailers to maneuver more easily.

“Ever since I was little, I was a tinkerer by trade. Now it’s my career; I get paid to tinker! Jumping into the home improvement industry has been the best decision I ever made,” Kyle says. “I get up every day and think, how can we use the store to give back to somebody? To serve other people is the best thing ever. So to have that opportunity has been amazing! That’s why I got into this industry and why I’ll never leave it.”

Perhaps the most important aspect of Maycrest Hardware was what it brought to Kyle’s family. Kyle keeps Dum Dums candy on the counter and a mop bucket on the store’s sales floor for his son, Vann, to push around, and the whole family spends time on Saturdays at the store together.

“My family is the biggest reason I got into the hardware industry. At my previous job, I was making a good living, but I also got stuck at work, so I couldn’t spend time with my family. Money doesn’t matter more than family,” Kyle says. “I can put my family first and still run a family-owned business. I get to make memories with my wife and son while still serving my community. It doesn’t get any better than that.”

CORY RHYNEHART

In his spare time, Cory serves as a volunteer firefighter in the community.

MILTON HARDWARE & BUILDING SUPPLY, MINORITY OWNER

Location Milton, New York

Category Over $3 Million in Annual Sales

In 2009, Cory Rhynehart joined the team at Milton Hardware & Building Supply as the new rental manager. Cory had previously worked as a stocking associate at the store for a year while finishing high school, and during that time, caught the owner’s attention with his work ethic and initiative. After some time away, Cory walked into Milton Hardware and was offered a deal by the owner, Jeff Paladino, to help build up the business in return for opportunities to buy into and someday take over the operation.

Cory dove in and spent a considerable amount of time working outside the store’s hours of operation, often unpaid, improving and expanding the business. He oversaw the creation and success of the store’s new rental division, which included the addition of a 5,000-square-foot building for storage and racking. He also spearheaded the design, development and construction of multiple building expansions and remodels, including the conversion of several bathrooms and showers into a large office space and the removal of several walls to expand the floor space of the store.

In 2016, Cory aided the store’s expansion into lumber and building supplies, including the addition of a nearly 70,000-square-foot building and a

covered rack building. He also started buying shares of the store, paving the way to become the minority partner he is today.

In 2017, Cory assisted the store in switching to a cloud-based point-of-sale (POS) system, allowing for better inventory management and remote work abilities. In 2018, he managed a project to implement online ordering and a new buy online, pick up in store program for STIHL and Benjamin Moore brand items. He also oversaw the installation of a self-help kiosk for STIHL products.

Cory took the initiative in 2019 to change from a paper-and-pen ordering system to a fully automated ordering system through their POS, improving the automation of inventory and accuracy of the products’ location in the store. The new system is able to generate orders from approximately 15,000 SKUs found in the store. In 2022, he streamlined the store’s billing process to offer paperless and email options.

When Cory joined in 2008, the store experienced three consecutive years of flat-line sales at $1.8 million. Through the new rental and lumber divisions Cory

“So for me, community involvement is always been big on my heart. As an independent store, community involvement helps build trust and shows a level of commitment you don’t find in big-box stores. We’re here helping the hometown kids.”

helped spearhead, the store has grown to $4.2 million in sales in 2021 and is projected for $5 million in 2022. While improving the store, Cory also works to build his industry knowledge. He regularly attends product knowledge seminars and conferences from building supply brands and vendors. Cory has undergone extensive training with STIHL Power Products, including several courses at their Virginia Beach plant to help him understand sales tactics and gain product familiarity, service and repair; he currently holds a Gold Level Technician certificate which is STIHL’s highest level of training.

Cory has also taken many classes through the Benjamin Moore training portal, attended True Value’s Rental University and Paint University and holds a small engine repair certification.

Cory uses several reports to monitor departments that are underperforming and items that don’t move well, staying cognizant of trends in the marketplace that may drive sales or make certain products obsolete. He pays attention to competitors’ merchandising, promotions and advertising and attends wholesaler markets annually to stay on top of industry trends. Recently, he has been able to spend more time looking for new and exciting products due to improved inventory reports.

Cory personally works with 10 out of 21 employees on staff in the daily operations of the store and hires based on friendliness, work ethic and organization skills. All new employees go through both STIHL Bronze and Benjamin Moore Training Portals.

Cory’s focus on his customer base and the store’s reputation for service and high-quality products has allowed the store to increase its customer loyalty, attract more contractors and expand its market share into more heavily serviced areas.

Milton Hardware & Building Supply is located in a rural farm community that has a traditional, smalltown feel. Community is important to the business, so Cory has planned an annual spring event host by the store for the community that benefits a local

children’s hospital. It includes vendors with displays and booths, free food, a bucket sale, helicopter rides and a host of giveaways.

Cory also supports the store’s donation of building materials to Boy Scout projects and continues store tradition by overseeing the store’s sponsorships of several local sports teams and the store’s investments in paid advertising at the local youth baseball field. He plans private events for the store at a local restaurant for the store’s contract holders to show his appreciation and allow them to see new products.

In his spare time, Cory volunteers as a firefighter, which he credits for growing his leadership abilities. He currently serves as a captain at the Marlboro Hose Co. No. 1, acting as the training officer and frequently taking state and national training to further his knowledge and skill.

In the future, Cory looks forward to continued growth as the store persists in winning over large contractors and adding additional space and buildings to the property. He is currently working to expand the store’s e-commerce to include all products and has a driven staff who want to see growth.

In the future, Cory hopes to fill a larger role as the sole operator of the store and puts great emphasis on building relationships with customers, vendors and employees. He enjoys being able to solve problems for his customers and the business. During the pandemic, he has worked hard to go above and beyond, helping the store out in any way that is needed and leading by example.

Cory’s love of helping customers and solving problems brought the success seen today.

“Receiving this honor confirms to me that the American dream is still very much alive,” Cory says. “There is something about having the opportunity to help build a business andwatch it succeed when the biggest investment you made was hard work and time. It shows that a business can be very successful and run as efficiently as a corporation while maintaining the honor and respect of an independent business in a small town.”

BRANDON DONAHUE

Locations Westerly, Rhode Island and Mystic, Connecticut

Category Multiple Stores

WesterlyPaints

Since he was a child, Brandon Donahue has worked at Westerly Paints, and after graduating from Rhode Island College, he took over operations from his father. In his short time as owner, Brandon has transitioned the store to a Benjamin Moore “Signature Store” and most recently to a “Store of the Future.” He also updated the store with a new point-of-sale system and automatic tint dispensers.

Being able to take over the family business has been a rewarding experience, Brandon says. He watched his parents and brother work hard and put in countless hours to make the business successful, and from high school on, he knew this was something he wanted to do.

“I always enjoyed learning about new products and interacting with the customers,” he says. “Being able to work with my parents and having my brother and cousin manage the two stores has made this family business something to take pride in.”

The year before Brandon took over, the store was making $700,000 annually and by 2015, it made over $1 million in sales for the first time. Sales were up to $1.5 million by 2020, and after he added a second store in July 2020, combined sales between the two stores were over $2 million in 2021. In just one year, Brandon grew annual sales at the new store from $600,000 to over $900,000.

In 2020, Brandon added a second store and hopes to continue expanding the company.

WESTERLY PAINTS & MYSTIC PAINTS, OWNER

Brandon says joining ALLPRO in March 2021 allowed him to stay competitive and maintain good profit margins.

“The move to ALLPRO also opened up more companies to buy from and private labels that separate my stores from the big-box stores,” he says.

Along with a commitment to growing his business, Brandon strives to grow as a manager and paint retailer by taking part in training seminars from paint and sundries manufacturers. He also attends paint and sundry shows several times a year to learn about the latest products and techniques in the industry.

In July 2020, Brandon purchased a store about 20 minutes from his other store. The additional location expanded his territory and increased profits by allowing for bulk purchases and the opportunity

“Being able to help build and grow the community is what owning a business is all about. What we do for the community lasts forever, which is why there is nothing more rewarding. It makes all of the long hours and hard work worth it.”

to join a buying group, making his stores more competitive and attractive to new customers.

Opening a new store during the peak of the pandemic was difficult and stressful, Brandon says, and he had concerns.

“But after weighing the pros and cons, I knew I had to take a leap and give it a shot,” he says. “Looking back 20 months later, I know I made the right decision and couldn’t be happier. I think a third store is in my future.”

Outside of the store, Brandon stays active in his community through the Ocean Community Chamber of Commerce. In 2021, he donated a van to the organization to use for the events it hosts, and he and his father organized a celebration for Westerly’s 350th anniversary that had over 10,000 people in attendance.

In 2014, Benjamin Moore hosted its Main Street Matters campaign, which awarded 20 towns across the United States and Canada by painting those downtown areas for free. Brandon campaigned for Westerly, which ended up being one of the winning towns and received over $100,000 in downtown renovations.

Brandon is also part of a band and volunteered his group to perform at a downtown event to raise money for the Bricks and Murals project. The Bricks and

Murals project brought in artists from around the world to paint murals on downtown buildings to highlight the history of the town. The store sponsors numerous chamber events and holds Diamond Sponsor status with the organization.

In 2021, Westerly Paints and Mystic Paints were some of the first businesses to support the chamber of commerce’s first annual creative landmark holiday installation of 378 lobster traps covered with 360 painted buoys.

His philanthropy efforts aren’t for his own gain, however; Brandon says he desires to contribute to the community in a positive way, network with community members and build an exceptional reputation for Westerly Paints.

Brandon says he is honored to receive the Young Retailer of the Year award. His father was given the Key Award in 2015 and was voted Citizen of the Year in 2017 for the work he has done in the community.

“Being an honoree for Young Retailer of the Year shows me that I am following in his footsteps and continuing to succeed in what he started 34 years ago,” Brandon says. “It takes a lot of long hours and hard work to succeed in this business. To be recognized for that work is humbling and means the world to me.”

NICOLE ANDERSON

WILCO CO-OP, MARKETING MANAGER

Location Oregon

Category Multiple Stores

WilcoStores

Without any experience in the hardware or farm store industries, Nicole Anderson started at Wilco as the advertising and promotions coordinator and quickly made a big impression in the organization. She won the 2014 Overall Wilco Customer Service Award, the 2017 Customer Service Award for the marketing team and the 2020 Excellence in Service Award for managers.

Nicole’s knack for working quickly but efficiently and juggling multiple high-priority tasks at once led to her first promotion in 2016 to promotions and events manager. During this time, she managed her own team to plan and oversee Wilco’s large internal and customer-facing events. One of the grand opening events in Puyallup, Washington, still holds the record at Wilco for a new store opening with over $284,000 in sales and 5,000 customer transactions during the four-day celebration.

Less than two years after her first promotion, Nicole was promoted again, this time to marketing and communication manager, where she also took on additional responsibilities maintaining budgets and overseeing creative and design processes for corporate communications.

Nicole helped launch and currently manages the Wilco Family Rewards program, with the store in Petaluma, California, adding 17,000 new members

In her short career, Nicole has garnered several accolades at work as well.

in less than a year thanks to her marketing and advertising efforts.

In 2019, Nicole became a category marketer for Wilco’s largest departments—livestock feeds, pet food and supplies, fencing and farm supplies. In this role, she led virtual chick clinics and multiple social media events and promotions. She headed up the concepts for and helped launch a microsite called Chickville that assists customers with poultry breed selection and tips and tricks on raising chicks. Nicole’s involvement and oversight of the company’s digital marketing has grown Wilco’s social presence to over 98,000 Facebook and 8,000 Instagram followers.

Nicole also uses her marketing and business skills to better her community. She leads Wilco’s Community Support Programs for community

“When you’re involved, you invest in the community, be it with your time or donations, which helps to strengthen the community.”

gardens and dog parks, the K9 officer program, youth programs for 4H and National FFA Organization (FFA) and equestrian clubs and chapters.

Reprising her role as a team leader, Nicole became marketing production manager in 2020 and has streamlined and automated processes to save countless hours of work for the company. Her ability to get the job done and lead a team was put to the test throughout 2020 and 2021 because of the pandemic, devastating wildfires in Wilco’s trade area and a historic ice storm.

Throughout those trials, the marketing team’s employee satisfaction scores increased in spite of the hardships. Nicole also successfully organized the company’s first virtual ribbon cutting and Facebook Live grand opening event for a new store opening in December 2020.

Nicole hasn’t stopped growing and moving, and was promoted to marketing manager in 2021. She oversees the multimillion-dollar advertising and community budgets and programs. From advertising to digital marketing, sponsorships to donations, community engagement to vendor relationships, Nicole leads it all.

Along with her team, she launched Wilco Weekly, an internal email publication that consolidates information from over a dozen team members in merchandising, marketing and training.

“She’s the most amazing person I’ve worked with in so many areas. I’ve never seen someone juggle so much, and she always succeeds no matter how difficult the situation,” says Jake Wilson, Wilco’s director of merchandise, marketing and e-commerce. “She’s not only a reliable high-performer, but she’s humble and has values that perfectly align with the company. She has provided a rock-solid foundation that allows the rest of us directly, or indirectly, to flourish around her.”

Nicole says she couldn’t have gotten to where she is in her career without the support of her team and mentors at Wilco.

“I came to Wilco with a very, very basic marketing knowledge base and limited industry knowledge, so to have progressed to the role I am in today is exciting,” she says. “Wilco has helped me be successful and has always been so supportive.

All of the opportunities have given me more experiences to grow and learn.”

Just like she encourages her team to grow and develop, Nicole seeks out development opportunities. She’s participated in Dale Carnegie leadership programs, Civil Treatment for Leaders, Bruce Tulgan training sessions and NHPA’s Retail Management Certification Program.

She’s also attended multiple digital marketing conferences, including the Portland Digital Summit and eTail West conferences, and has gone on knowledge-gathering trips.

Nicole stays active in the community as well. She has managed all of Wilco’s donations and sponsorships for the last eight years, including Wilco’s FFA Forever program that has raised over $1.7 million for FFA in Oregon, Washington and California. During her time at Wilco, she has spent countless hours working at FFA conventions, served on FFA grant committees and managed the FFA gift card program, all furthering the future of agriculture in the area.

Another organization Nicole volunteers and participates with is Oregon AgLink, a nonprofit dedicated to growing Oregon agriculture through education and promotion. In 2021, she served as chair of the organization’s signature agriculture event, Denim & Diamonds. In her first year as chair, the event raised a record amount of money.

Nicole, her husband Jace, daughter Ellie and dog Tucker, are active in a family farm with cattle and live the lifestyle of Wilco customers. She understands the passion that comes through customer hobbies and lives the busy life Wilco works to support and make easier.

“It is an enormous honor to be a Young Retailer of the Year honoree and one that I don’t take lightly. Having come from a completely different industry as a school teacher to now be at this point in my career, it feels like this is where I was always meant to be,” Nicole says. “As someone who doesn’t seek recognition for the work that I do, I am extremely humbled to know that my colleagues took the time to nominate me. To be chosen as an honoree is definitely a highlight of my career.”

JADE HAYNIE

Jade spends at least two weeks in every store each year to get to know each of the stores and the staff better.

NORTHWEST HARDWARE, GENERAL MANAGER

Location Montana

Category Multiple Stores

Billingshws

BillingsHardware

In 2007, Jade Haynie began working part time at Billings Hardware, unloading deliveries while attending Montana State University Billings with plans to transfer to Bozeman to pursue an engineering degree.

While in school, he began questioning his future plans and in 2018, was offered a full-time position by Billings Hardware owner, TJ Comstock, who operated that location and two others under his parent company Northwest Hardware.

Jade decided to take a break from school and accepted the full-time position. With the knowledge from DIY projects he worked on with his dad and his experience flipping houses in college with his uncle, Jade spent his days unloading trucks, making deliveries, working the salesfloor and cash register and soaking up knowledge along the way. Jade was soon closing the store and managing the tool department, where he added power tools.

In 2010, Jade was promoted to assistant manager at the flagship store on Grand Avenue, where he reset the store layout, rearranged the fixtures and revamped the paint department. He became a customer favorite along the way through his knowledge, friendliness and willingness to go to any length to assist a customer.

Jade was appointed the store manager for the new Broadwater location in 2012. He remodeled the

entire building, helped pick out the merchandise and reworked the store’s layout. Jade also brought in a full line of lawn mowers to the outdoor power equipment section of the lawn and garden department and added a repair shop to the new location.

In March 2013, the new Broadwater store opened and recorded nearly $1.3 million in first-year sales.

Jade’s focus on builder supplies, plumbing, electrical and lawn and garden resulted in the categories bringing in 51% of overall sales, and his repair shop generated $250,000 in revenue.

Jade continued to improve his skills and knowledge by participating in the inaugural class of the Retail Management Certification Program from NHPA and joining a roundtable of other young retailers from the first class. He became STIHL Silver

“You can ask anyone and they’ll tell you my No. 1 thing is customer service. I love talking with and working with people.

Just knowing I made a difference in someone’s day means the world to me.”

Certified, trained in small engine repair, participated in over eight training classes from vendors, learned from his staff and gained hands-on experience in the store’s repair shop.

In 2014, Jade increased sales by 49% during his second year as manager and assisted in the product selection of a newly added store in Havre and the reset of the original Grand Avenue location.

He implemented the Paladin point-of-sale software in 2015 in all five of Northwest’s locations, and by 2019, his hard work and assistance in the other locations led him to the position of general manager over all Northwest Hardware stores.

Soon after, COVID-19 brought challenges. Jade installed sneeze guards at each location, made online ordering available, delivered products to homes, established curbside pickup and developed contingency plans for various scenarios that could occur in his stores.

During his first year as general manager, Jade grew companywide sales to $9.9 million and increased the average ticket by over $2, exhibiting a 7% increase over the previous year.

As general manager, Jade holds Zoom meetings every two weeks with all of his store managers and makes an effort to visit each location at least twice a year for a whole week to get to know staff and improve operations. He has also implemented an online task management tool called Dexter that breaks the store up into zones. Employees are assigned responsibilities in their zone that change every day, which has led to improved efficiency, cross-training and accountability, Jade says.

As Jade succeeds, he continues to serve his community, often visiting and assisting his elderly customers and supporting charitable efforts with donations or items for raffles. Jade also serves on the board for the Billings Preservation Society, which oversees Moss Mansion, a turn-of-the-century home and museum listed on the National Register of Historic Places and organizes fundraising events for the local landmark throughout the year.

Recently, he has helped in fundraising efforts for a local organization called Kids ‘N’ Cowboys that treats kids with cancer and their families to dinner and a night at the rodeo.

Jade also sits on the committee for the annual Bark in the Park event, which takes place at the minor league baseball stadium in Billings. The event focuses on pet adoptions and serves as a fundraiser for the Yellowstone Valley Animal Shelter. Jade owns a Great Pyrenees named Lily who comes to work with him every day and has become a local icon; he brings her to the event to watch Billings Mustangs games.

In 2021, Northwest Hardware received an offer too good to refuse for their building on Grand Avenue and closed the store that September, dispersing its inventory to the remaining locations and using the influx of cash to invest in the businesses’ future.

Despite having one less location in 2021, Jade increased average sales per location by 8.5%, increased margins by 2.3% to nearly 40% and raised the average ticket by over $1 to $31.12.

Moving forward, Jade has plans to reset the Havre location and remodel the Eureka store, where he is also coordinating a customer appreciation event and team celebration. Focus will then return to the flagship location on Broadwater Avenue, where he will look for ways to modernize the store’s appearance and update and expand its product selection. Jade continues to pursue opportunities to add additional locations, and several options on the horizon could result in a new store—or several—in the next year.

“I love getting to share my knowledge with other people,” Jade says. “I love that I get to do something different every day. I don’t see myself ever getting out of the hardware industry. Ever since the first day on the floor at Broadwater, I’ve been hooked. It’s in my blood now. I live for this stuff.”

ADAM MOULTON

WOODSTOCK

Location Ontario, Canada Category Multiple Stores

AllandaleHHBC

IngersollHHBC

WoodstockHHBC

Athird-generation retailer, Adam Moulton has learned lessons from his family about customer service, building and leading teams, promotional merchandising and community engagement that form the foundation of his own multistore retail operation today.

He currently owns three Home Hardware Building Centre (HHBC) locations across Ontario, Canada. He bought his first store in Barrie in 2017, named Allandale HHBC, in a retail heavy location in a rapidly growing community. He bought his second store in Woodstock in January 2021 and purchased his third store in Ingersoll just six months later in July 2021.

Adam says he strives to create strong teams across all his stores; that commitment to excellence has resulted in his teams accomplishing major initiatives at the Allandale store. The team there oversaw a full retail renovation and the creation of a kitchen and bath design studio, launched a full-line STIHL and Cub Cadet dealership, expanded contractor business and created a power aisle with proper feature endcaps and wing panels. The result was 37% growth in sales and an overall margin increase of 2.4 points.

The success of the Allandale location allowed Adam to pursue expansion opportunities, and in January 2021, he purchased Woodstock HHBC. This location is 25,000 square feet on 8.5 acres with a

Adam works to implement technologies that will help his staff better serve customers.

19,000-square-foot lumber shed and a fully racked 8,000-square-foot storage shed for kitchens, vanities and overstock. Along with additional physical space, Adam’s employee count tripled overnight. He also added additional sales volume, increasing sales at the Woodstock location by 14.7% in year one.

“Investing in training for my sales teams, purchasing new equipment and taking a strong in-stock position in a supply-constrained commodity market lead to the increase in growth and our success at the Woodstock location,” Adam says.

Adding the Ingersoll HHBC location, located just 20 minutes down the highway from Woodstock, strengthened Adam’s regional service offering and grew the contractor side of the business. In the first six months of operation, sales grew over 18% at

“Day in and day out, our customers make a conscious decision to shop at a locally owned and operated store and support all the different jobs that operate in our smaller communities. Our community engagement is an opportunity to give back to the people who support us every day.”

Ingersoll HHBC, which had been underperforming due to low in-stock positions, minimal promotional merchandising in the power aisle and understaffing, Adam says. He brought on additional staff, including merchandising experts, and invested in coaching, which improved the team’s performance and the customers’ in-store experience.

Not wanting to rest on his laurels, Adam’s latest project at the Ingersoll store is the launch of an M&M Meat Shop Express location in the store. He says the addition will act as a traffic driver because M&M Meats closed its Ingersoll store location. In 2023, Adam plans on adding 10,000 square feet of retail space and a 5,000-square-foot garden center, expanding the retail footprint by over 15,000 square feet and doubling the size of the location. The expansion will allow the company to provide greater product offering, larger in-stock positions and a higher level of product selection for its customers.

The growth from one store to three required Adam to change the administrative functions of the operation to be more efficient. He created a centralized team that operates out of Woodstock, the largest of the three stores, which will be vital to future expansion. He also implemented new point of sale software in Ingersoll and merged all of the stores to operate out of a centralized server location. All of the stores now share inventory levels, pricing, accounts, vendors, financials and other data.

“As I look to the future, I want to focus on continued coaching and empowerment of my team, increasing sales and service and investing back in the business through expansion projects to drive continued growth,” he says.

Adam also invests back into the independent home improvement industry and the communities where he lives and works. He actively supports Operation Shoebox and the Providing Instruments for Excellence (PIE) program. He partners with a member of parliament and a local pizza restaurant to support PIE, and last year their efforts filled over 1,500 backpacks with school supplies for children in need in the community.

His staff also drives where the business gives back, he says. The general manager in Barrie has two grandchildren with autism, so the company does a lot to support autism awareness, and it also partners with Simcoe County Housing Corporation.

When immediate needs arise, Adam and his team are ready to jump in and help there as well. During the summer of 2021, a tornado struck a residential area near one of the stores, and Adam and his team arrived on the scene to assist with the cleanup efforts. They handed out shovels, brooms, gloves, tarps and water and helped residents cut down broken trees.

Being named a Young Retailer of the Year honoree is a huge honor for Adam. But for him, the honor is less about his abilities and more a testament to the way his team works and has allowed him to grow and expand.

“The strength of our team is what allows me and our company to continue to grow,” he says. “This award is more about our team’s ability to move in a common direction, communicate effectively with one another and lean on one another, and it shows how dedicated our staff is to seeing our business succeed.”

COREEN PIERCE

h b Coreen has been instrumental in employee development at Koopman Lumber.

KOOPMAN LUMBER, BRANCH ADMINISTRATION MANAGER

Location Massachusetts

Category Multiple Stores

Koopman_lumber

KoopmanLumber andHardware

Coreen Pierce joined the team at Koopman Lumber in 2013 after her mother joined the operation. She had spent her youth helping her mother, who worked as a store manager for another hardware operation in the area, so Coreen was familiar with the home improvement retail industry.

Over the last nine years, Coreen has invested in her industry knowledge and has contributed to Koopman Lumber operations in a variety of business areas. While earning her degree in psychology, Coreen worked full time as a sales associate at the business. During that time, she led an inventory and stocking optimization project, devising a more efficient stocking method utilizing new technology. She also trained her peers on the new system.

Following graduation, Coreen was offered a fulltime role as assistant to the operations manager, which gave her additional opportunities to learn details about the company’s practices. In this role, Coreen had the opportunity to host orientations and employee training, develop marketing collateral and work with the purchasing and accounting departments.

“This role was where I fell in love with the business,” Coreen says. “I learned nonstop, and my role grew and developed. My favorite and most important responsibilities were writing all our store procedures, working in data management and eventually assisting with e-commerce development.”

In 2018, Coreen took on managing the live plants department. She streamlined the ordering, receiving and accounting process for the department, and in three years, profits grew by 49%.

As a result of her efforts in the department, Koopman Lumber’s greenhouses were voted “Best Local Garden Store & Nursery” by community members in a local competition.

“This industry and community involvement go hand in hand. I love doing events where we go out into the community and get to see our customers, and our customers get excited to see us out in the community.”

Coreen’s commitment to employee training was a key component when Koopman Lumber transitioned software companywide. Company leadership selected Coreen to be in a group of core staff who were tasked with undergoing intensive training on the new software and then leading staff through the launch. She created a 10-week training program, which included online modules, in-person classes and workshops, and led 75 retail staff members through the training.

In January, Coreen became branch administration manager, where she manages co-op payments with vendors, oversees the product information for Koopman Lumber’s e-commerce platform, engages with human resources and other stakeholders to develop and coordinate company training initiatives, assists with measuring marketing initiative performance and works with the operations team on the loyalty program and company objectives.

In addition to being engaged in many aspects of company operations, Coreen is also active in the community and with Koopman Lumber customers. She holds certificates in culinary arts, state allergen awareness and ServSafe food protection management, which allows the business to participate in grilling demonstrations and access permits to serve food at community events. She also is part of a group

of staff who participate in the Blackstone Valley Home & Community Expo, a local home show, to spread awareness of Koopman Lumber in the community.

Coreen’s appreciation for and commitment to training extends to her own professional development. In addition to her culinary arts certification and her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Johnson & Wales University, she has explored many industry-specific training programs. Early in her career at Koopman, she completed NHPA’s Basic Retail Training 100 and 200 level programs, which helped her develop product and department knowledge. She also has taken various vendor training opportunities.

In 2021, she enrolled in NHPA’s Retail Management Certification Program, and her team’s business improvement project received second place in a presentation judged by industry experts. The group developed a learning management system initiative that will be rolled out companywide this year.

“This program was a great learning opportunity focused on talent management, business analytics and retail operations,” Coreen says. “I look forward to seeing how I can help push our company to new successes.”

BRANDON WRIGHT

STAN’S MERRY MART, OWNER

Location Wenatchee, Washington

Category Multiple Stores

StansMerryMart

Brandon Wright had his first responsibilities at Stan’s Merry Mart at age 8, doing odd jobs in the business his grandparents bought into in 1969. In high school, he worked as a cashier for the business, transitioning into a dropship buyer role and serving as assistant manager. Even during his time at Gonzaga University, which is more than 170 miles from the store, he continued serving as a buyer and scheduler for the business.

Brandon returned to Stan’s after graduating college in 2010, and in just two years was named president of the operation. His strategic investments in store inventory and his commitment to networking with other retailers and industry education have led to continued growth for the business over the last decade.

When he returned to the business full time in 2010, Brandon immediately started making key category decisions, including adding grills and workwear. In addition to serving the community with core hardlines, the operation also is a destination in the area for sporting goods, including fishing gear, camping equipment and firearms.

With a passion for helping children, Brandon has coached youth sports team for over a decade.

Since 2011, Stan’s Merry Mart has seen 24.5% annual sales growth, and Brandon’s second store, Othello Ace Hardware, grew sales by 13% annually in three years. Brandon intends to grow to five locations within the next three years.

Brandon prioritizes making connections with other retailers, and one connection led to him purchasing Othello Ace Hardware in January 2019.

Brandon and former Othello Ace owner Ken Story spent several years developing a friendship rooted in their shared experience as hardware store operators. They shared product ideas and retail operations strategies over the course of four years, and Brandon let Ken know that if he ever wanted to sell his business,

“If you’re going to be a community leader, you have to be involved in your community. For your customers to believe in you, they need to see you out there helping in the community, so our focus is on homelessness and helping children.”

he would be interested. In June 2018, when Ken was ready to sell, his first and only call was to Brandon.

“Not a week goes by that I’m not communicating with another owner to check in on how their sales are and what they are having success with,” Brandon says. “I’m always trying to learn from other owners.”

In addition to learning from other retailers, Brandon has participated in numerous industry training programs and initiatives over the last decade, primarily through his hardware co-op, Ace Hardware. Brandon has attended the co-op’s buying trade shows twice a year since 2009, and he makes a point to participate in classes and seminars at those events.

At the Wenatchee location, the growth of the team over the last 12 years has mimicked the company growth, and now there are 65 employees.

“Our employees have believed in our vision and stuck with us,” Brandon says. “Our staff deserves all the credit for our growth and improvements throughout the years at both Stan’s Merry Mart and Othello Ace Hardware.”

In addition to building into and developing his team and his business, Brandon is committed to Wenatchee and the surrounding communities. He has worked as a volunteer coach for several area college and youth basketball teams for over a decade.

Brandon also works with organizations that help underprivileged people in the community, including Serve Wenatchee, a local nonprofit that provides area students who are in need with shoes, clothing, backpacks and other necessities.

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Thank you to our Young Retailer of the Year sponsors.

This program would not be possible without the support of our sponsors. These companies have invested in the future of the independent home improvement channel.