Ace

The new Melville store will mark the chain's 29th location.

Ace Hardware appointed John Venhuizen chief operating officer, effective Jan. 1, 2012.

Venhuizen has spent nearly two decades with Ace and most recently served as executive VP supply chain, information technology (IT) and international. In this position, he helped grow the number of Ace stores around the world, as well as create a variety of successful support and incentive programs for retailers.

A groundbreaking ceremony Tuesday drew representatives from Ace and local business leaders to the site of a future retail support center in West Jefferson, Ohio.

The co-op expects the 500,000-sq.-ft. facility to be completed in July 2014. The facility will essentially replace an older facility currently operating in Toledo.

Chicago -- With a view toward driving profitable sales, Ace VP merchandising John Surane pointed to some merchandise initiatives, regional wins and corporate strategies during the co-op's 2011 Ace Convention and Exhibits.

One of the brightest merchandising spots was the Craftsman tools brand. Back in February 2010, Ace and Sears announced a partnership that opened the way for Ace retailers to sell the Sears-owned Craftsman brand. 

It’s been nearly two months since Chicago-based True Value launched its new e-commerce site, and in that time the hardware co-op has seen traffic to TrueValue.com triple.


The new site already features more than 22,000 SKUs of its core assortments in accordance with its Destination True Value format.