Hardware/General Store

[eavjackets]

For the love of all that is holy, we need a hardware/essential goods store. I was shocked to discover Village Hardware had closed (even more surprised to hear the details of how/why it closed). I cannot get excited about a gym opening up. When I lived in little 5 10 years ago, I would drive to EAV to get things from VH. Damn shame it's gone.

My ideal is something that has the stuff you're used to finding at Ace plus a substantial greenhouse/gardening center. With all of the DIY warriors, shade tree mechanics, gear heads, green thumbs and tinkerers that reside in the EAV, I can't imagine that such a store, if operated properly and local-friendly, couldn't succeed.

[Flower Lady]

So were you shocked only now to learn that Ace had closed? Or when it closed?

Unfortunately, it can't stay open because people just aren't spending enough on what the rents cost here. If rent was lower and the building maintained and in good shape by the owner and people shopped (including buying more expensive items and not just 5  cent screws) then it could work.
The reality is, we live in a neighborhood where the landlords see $$ and the residents see cents.

[eavjackets]

So were you shocked only now to learn that Ace had closed? Or when it closed?

Unfortunately, it can't stay open because people just aren't spending enough on what the rents cost here. If rent was lower and the building maintained and in good shape by the owner and people shopped (including buying more expensive items and not just 5  cent screws) then it could work.
The reality is, we live in a neighborhood where the landlords see $$ and the residents see cents.

I just moved back to Atlanta in 2009 and have been in Midtown until moving here this month, so I wasn't aware that they had closed until just a few weeks ago. I agree with you about the landlord mindset - I think they believe EAV is the Highlands. It really is unfortunate.

I guess my question is "where are/were people spending money, then?" because I see plenty of folks doing home/yard/auto projects all over the place. I guess they're just going to Lowe's or HD. Just stinks, is all. I really worry about all of our local businesses and figured something like VH would have enough local support to keep going.

[MRice]

Many of us shopped at Ace, but being a small store can be a Catch 22. You don't have room to stock the variety of a big box store but you can't survive on sales of yard wate bags.

[SteveD]

Yes, it was always our first stop, but we were frequently disappointed to not find what we were looking for, invariably winding up at the big box down the road. 

[ohmylorelei]

Same here, yes. We'd go there for something, and then be told they could "order it." Sometimes we could wait, but usually we couldn't.

Maybe they should have put in a bar next door. Sigh.

[Flower Lady]

The nature of a quickie hardware store is that you can only stock so much because you gamble on it's sale. For buying smaller amounts you pay a premium, where as Big Box hardware stores work on the Wal-Mart mentality of buying huge amounts of beige paint and then advertising that beige is the newest and biggest thing (and sucking all the HGTV shows into saying the same thing and convincing everyone that an entire house of beige is homey)....
The corporitization of Government is permeating every level of society, and the Average American is feeding into it by desiring cheap mass marketed goods made by poorly paid men, women and children. It is indeed beginning to ruin American business. What people desire becomes an avalanche, and I don't think they realize how it effects every facet of life. It is filtering down to the mom and pop shops who simply can not compete with mass marketed goods at lower than low prices.
People would argue about this with me all the time (including the local reporter who wrote a story about the demise of the store). I worked there, I saw how ordering was done, I saw the prices and the structure of business. It can be maintained in some markets: some stores such as Ace are doing pretty well. However we were at the Smith Ace two weeks ago and noticed so many empty shelves or "we have one of these"....that worries me. The Intown Ace in Decatur however seems to be a revolving door of business! It's wonderful and well stocked. There is nothing at all different about these stores except for location.

[Go Sox]

Two words:  woodworking studio. 

Seriously, though, I've been to Ace Hardwares everywhere in Atlanta, and this one was the only one that didn't sell what I needed. Moldy cat food?  Sure!  Trash bags or flashlight batteries?  Nope. Obscure gardening lawn ornaments and woodworking equipment and expensive birdhouses?  Absolutely!  Lightbulbs, picture hangers and charcoal?  Sorry, no.  A red wagon!?  Fantastic!!  Super glue or twine?  Alas, no.   

I gave up on EAV's Ace after constant frustration that the simplest things just weren't there. This increased noticeably after the woodworking takeover.  I finally started going to the Inman Park one and had no issues. Frustrating, yes, but blaming landlords for a business that just doesn't make it is silly. Somethimes businesses just fail.     

[ohmylorelei]

Yes, this.  In general I agree with Flower Lady, but it just seemed to get ridiculous.  At the end we'd go there for really standard things, like mulch. And they'd say the store was too small to stock it in real quantities.  I LOVED that place. I did my holiday shopping there. pPent as much as I possibly could. They were so wonderful to my kids.  But as the pickings got slimmer, it got harder and harder.  Downward spiral.

[Cap'n Ken]

Two words:  woodworking studio. 

Seriously, though, I've been to Ace Hardwares everywhere in Atlanta, and this one was the only one that didn't sell what I needed. Moldy cat food?  Sure!  Trash bags or flashlight batteries?  Nope. Obscure gardening lawn ornaments and woodworking equipment and expensive birdhouses?  Absolutely!  Lightbulbs, picture hangers and charcoal?  Sorry, no.  A red wagon!?  Fantastic!!  Super glue or twine?  Alas, no.   

I gave up on EAV's Ace after constant frustration that the simplest things just weren't there. This increased noticeably after the woodworking takeover.  I finally started going to the Inman Park one and had no issues. Frustrating, yes, but blaming landlords for a business that just doesn't make it is silly. Somethimes businesses just fail.     

I know I bought trash bags, batteries, light bulbs, charcoal and super glue there. Sorry if you weren't aware enough to find those things.

I think Jason tried to find the right mix that would bring people in to the store more often, which is why there was a lot of odd things thrown out there. Small local hardware stores face a huge challenge with Lowe's and Home Depot. Not enough people really value being able to buy those things in the neighborhood (including most people who say they do). That was hugely evident in the number of Lowe's, Home Depot and Walmart yard bags compared to Ace yard bags back in the day. Yes, that was an easy test to see if you gave enough of a shit about having a hardware store in your neighborhood that you'd go over there to buy yard bags even if you were already at Lowe's or even if Walmart sold them cheaper. Few people did.

[Go Sox]

Different experiences, then. I always went there first and have always supported Village businesses over any competition.  They simply did not carry what I ever needed.  It sounds like I was not the only person with this issue, so glad it worked for you.

[Cap'n Ken]

Different experiences, then. I always went there first and have always supported Village businesses over any competition.  They simply did not carry what I ever needed.  It sounds like I was not the only person with this issue, so glad it worked for you.

Maybe you were using example products to say you often didn't find the staple items you were looking for. But you happened to pick a number of things I actually bought there. Still have some Ace trash bags in my garage, in fact.

[strawberrythief]

I don't think you can argue "Ace never had anything I needed" or "Ace always had everything I needed" - it was hit and miss. Shoppers don't like inconsistency. It is just like businesses that have opened up in the Village with unpredictable hours. Once you attempt to patronize a shop/restaurant a couple of times and they aren't open when they say they will be, you don't feel encouraged to go back.

[smiley]

I hated it when Village Hardware closed, but wasn't surprised.  They did carry most of the basics, like garbage bags, charcoal, batteries, etc. but so does Buddy's and I can get beer there too.  For a damn good example of what a hardware store should be, try the Ace on Scott Blvd, it is my new go-to hardware store.  I couldn't see any real demand for the woodworking studio or high-end tools for it.  I also don't know anyone that buys $60/gal paint.  What I needed is somewhere that carries valve packing, pipe glue, solder, fittings, sandpaper, saw blades, thermocouple, ballast, rope, and yes, screws of all different shapes and sizes.  And, make keys that work, damnit!  You know, "hardware"...

There are probably a number of reasons they could not make it, but I always stopped by there first, and 75% of the time, they didn't have the things I needed.

[Flower Lady]

Ace sold a lot of the eco friendly paint. When it arrived no other store or line in Atlanta carried no VOC paint. Within a few months, they all did. Not only was Village Ace investing to supply a demand (yep, there sure was!), Village Ace were also "doing the right thing".
I  hear you on the wood working.
You all did buy many batteries, flashlights (thanks to the weird electrical grid here) and many other supplies but the store can't manage with that. Ace stores with higher rental bases need to be able to either be a small convenience store or carry and sell competitively large ticket items. At one point the woodworking area did have space for larger ticket items but they were not selling, so the decision was made to try and find something else. That "something else" was not easy to find.
Scott Ace is a fantastic store. Their "something else" is Carhart clothing and giftware.  Giftware did not work that well in EAV, since we already have Traders (and they are in exactly the same boat with trying to sell larger ticket items to pay the rent!!). Scott Ace is also on a very main street - having an Ace now on what is essentially a smaller street is difficult. Being on Moreland could have made all the difference, you just never know