Ace Hardware is an American hardware retailer founded in 1924 by Richard Hesse, E.C. Stuber, and Frank Burke. It is a cooperative of independently owned Ace stores. As of 2018, Ace Hardware Corporation operates 2,200 stores in the United States and 70 stores in other countries for a worldwide total of about 4,000 locations. The company is headquartered in Oak Brook, Illinois.
The average Ace Hardware store is 12,000 square feet (1,100 m2) in size and carries about 20,000 items. In addition to hardware and tools, Ace stores sell paint, lawn and garden supplies, outdoor living products, automotive goods, and home decor items.
Ace Hardware was founded in 1924 by a group of Chicago hardware store owners with the goal of buying merchandise at a better price than they were currently paying.
The first Ace store opened later that year on West Chicago Avenue in Oak Park, Illinois. In 1931, the logo was created. In 1936, the cooperative began using a wholesale warehouse to improve inventory control and lower costs.
By 1950, there were 50 Ace stores in the Midwest. In 1957, the company expanded to the West Coast with the purchase of 27 Richfield Stores in California. In 1976, Ace entered into a franchise agreement with Jardine International to open stores in Asia and the Middle East.
Is Ace Hardware family owned?
No, Ace Hardware is not family owned.
