How to Start a Hardware Store

A hardware store typically sells hand and power tools, building materials, fasteners, keys, locks, hinges, chains,electrical supplies, plumbing supplies, cleaning products, housewares, utensils, and paint. They’re designed for DIY consumers and handymen (as well as tradesmen) who need a place to source supplies for projects.

Ready to turn your business idea into a reality? We recommend forming an LLC as it is the most affordable way to protect your personal assets. You can do this yourself or with our trusted partner for a small fee.

Northwest ($29 + State Fees)

DIY: How to Start an LLC

Start a hardware store by following these 10 steps:

  1. Plan your Hardware Store
  2. Form your Hardware Store into a Legal Entity
  3. Register your Hardware Store for Taxes
  4. Open a Business Bank Account & Credit Card
  5. Set up Accounting for your Hardware Store
  6. Get the Necessary Permits & Licenses for your Hardware Store
  7. Get Hardware Store Insurance
  8. Define your Hardware Store Brand
  9. Create your Hardware Store Website
  10. Set up your Business Phone System

We have put together this simple guide to starting your hardware store. These steps will ensure that your new business is well planned out, registered properly and legally compliant.

Exploring your options? Check out other small business ideas.

STEP 1: Plan your business

A clear plan is essential for success as an entrepreneur. It will help you map out the specifics of your business and discover some unknowns. A few important topics to consider are:

Luckily we have done a lot of this research for you.

What will you name your business?

Choosing the right name is important and challenging. If you don’t already have a name in mind, visit our How to Name a Business guide or get help brainstorming a name with our Hardware Store Name Generator

If you operate a sole proprietorship, you might want to operate under a business name other than your own name. Visit our DBA guide to learn more.

When registering a business name, we recommend researching your business name by checking:

  • Your state’s business records
  • Federal and state trademark records
  • Social media platforms
  • Web domain availability

It’s very important to secure your domain name before someone else does.

What are the costs involved in opening a hardware store?

A small hardware store can be started for less than $100,000. Costs include rent for the building, start-up inventory, display setup, and cash reserve for staffing and labor costs. You’ll also want insurance.

Start-up inventory will likely run between $50,000 and $75,000. Rent, insurance, and other related costs will vary depending on your locale.

In general, you should not spend more than 20% to 30% of your total revenue on rent. Insurance should cover liability as well as loss of your inventory. Premiums for that insurance should make up no more than 5% to 10% of the total value of your business.

What are the ongoing expenses for a hardware store?

Ongoing expenses for this type of business include supplies, rent, utilities, and insurance. All of these costs will vary significantly depending on your location.

Who is the target market?

The business makes money by charging customers for tools and supplies. Usually the price is a fixed price for the item. In the case of items like rope or chain, the store may sell an item by the foot or priced by the yard.

Most customers pay by credit or cash. It’s important to offer customers a variety of ways to pay you as some volume customers may require credit terms in order to do business with you. Volume orders/clients also allow you to include finance charges or terms in your purchase price. It’s not uncommon for a hardware store to offer terms of 30 days to 60 days for a well-established client. However, these terms can be extended with or without interest. Most customers expect 30 days no interest.

You can establish a policy of charging interest after 30 days to collect more money from customers who need more time to pay.

How does a hardware store make money?

Ideal customers are usually DIY customers or handymen. However, a hardware store can set up trade accounts with local tradesmen to earn consistent business. For example, a store might contract with a professional carpenter to offer supplies for his business on an ongoing basis.

Clients are typically local. Advertising for a hardware store can be done one of several ways, including billboards, Yellow Page ads, pay-per-click local online ads, fliers, and email marketing to an existing customer list.

Email marketing is an underutilized strategy in this industry because most hardware stores rely on word of mouth and foot traffic. However, by emailing your existing customers on a regular basis, you can generate significantly higher revenues than relying on people randomly coming into your store when they need something.

A targeted email campaign would also allow you to better predict revenue and profit. Offer sales around holidays, for example, when business is typically slow. Entice customers with value, not discounts. Show them your own personality. Don’t make the mistake of running a discount-driven business as this only cultivates fairweather customers.

How much can you charge customers?

Hardware stores charge per inventory item. As such, there is no set price for all items in the store. When figuring out how much you should sell your items for, check your local competition or give yourself a gross margin on COGS of at least 40% (which is the industry average).

How much profit can a hardware store make?

Typical operating profit is between 1.6% and 6%, with a net profit before taxes of between 3% and 7%.

How can you make your business more profitable?

Making the business more profitable would involve supplementing your main source of income with other related services. For example, if you sell carpeting or tools and supplies for carpeting, you might partner with a local carpenter and offer installation services. You could do the same for window, door, roofing, or other major project.

Another way to make the business more profitable is to offer related products like planting or gardening supplies, which can be a supplemental source of revenue to your main product lines.

Want a more guided approach? Access TRUiC’s free Small Business Startup Guide – a step-by-step course for turning your business idea into reality. Get started today!

STEP 2: Form a legal entity

One crucial aspect that cannot be overlooked when starting your hardware store is the importance of establishing a solid business foundation. While sole proprietorships and partnerships are the most common entity types for small businesses, they’re a far less stable and advantageous option than LLCs.

This is because unincorporated business structures (i.e., sole proprietorships and partnerships) expose you as an owner to personal liability for your business’s debts and legal actions, while LLCs protect you by keeping your personal assets separate from your business’s liabilities.

In practice, this means that if your hardware store were to face a lawsuit or incur any debts, your savings, home, and other personal assets could not be used to cover these costs. On top of this, forming your business as an LLC also helps it to appear more legitimate and trustworthy.

More than 84% of our readers opt to collaborate with a professional LLC formation service to kickstart their venture. We’ve negotiated a tailored discount for our readers, bringing the total down to just $29.

FORM YOUR LLC

Note: If you’re interested in more information before getting started, we recommend having a look at our state-specific How to Start an LLC guide (DIY) or our in-depth Best LLC Services review (for those opting for a professional service).

STEP 3: Register for taxes

You will need to register for a variety of state and federal taxes before you can open for business.

In order to register for taxes you will need to apply for an EIN. It’s really easy and free!

You can acquire your EIN through the IRS website. If you would like to learn more about EINs, read our article, What is an EIN?

There are specific state taxes that might apply to your business. Learn more about state sales tax and franchise taxes in our state sales tax guides.

STEP 4: Open a business bank account & credit card

Using dedicated business banking and credit accounts is essential for personal asset protection.

When your personal and business accounts are mixed, your personal assets (your home, car, and other valuables) are at risk in the event your business is sued. In business law, this is referred to as piercing your corporate veil.

Open a business bank account

Besides being a requirement when applying for business loans, opening a business bank account:

  • Separates your personal assets from your company’s assets, which is necessary for personal asset protection.
  • Makes accounting and tax filing easier.

Recommended: Read our Best Banks for Small Business review to find the best national bank or credit union.

Get a business credit card

Getting a business credit card helps you:

Recommended: Apply for an easy approval business credit card from BILL and build your business credit quickly.

STEP 5: Set up business accounting

Recording your various expenses and sources of income is critical to understanding the financial performance of your business. Keeping accurate and detailed accounts also greatly simplifies your annual tax filing.

Make LLC accounting easy with our LLC Expenses Cheat Sheet.

STEP 6: Obtain necessary permits and licenses

Failure to acquire necessary permits and licenses can result in hefty fines, or even cause your business to be shut down.

State & Local Business Licensing Requirements

In most states, it is necessary to obtain a Hardware Store license. Learn more about licensing requirements in your state by visiting SBA’s reference to state licenses and permits.

Most businesses are required to collect sales tax on the goods or services they provide. To learn more about how sales tax will affect your business, read our article, Sales Tax for Small Businesses.

STEP 7: Get business insurance

Just as with licenses and permits, your business needs insurance in order to operate safely and lawfully. Business Insurance protects your company’s financial wellbeing in the event of a covered loss.

There are several types of insurance policies created for different types of businesses with different risks. If you’re unsure of the types of risks that your business may face, begin with General Liability Insurance. This is the most common coverage that small businesses need, so it’s a great place to start for your business.

Another notable insurance policy that many businesses need is Workers’ Compensation Insurance. If your business will have employees, it’s a good chance that your state will require you to carry Workers’ Compensation Coverage.

Find out what types of insurance your Hardware Store needs and how much it will cost you by reading our guide Business Insurance for Hardware Store.

STEP 8: Define your brand

Your brand is what your company stands for, as well as how your business is perceived by the public. A strong brand will help your business stand out from competitors.

If you already have a logo, you can also add it to a QR code with our Free QR Code Generator. Choose from 13 QR code types to create a code for your business cards and publications, or to help spread awareness for your new website.

How to promote & market a hardware store

Getting new customers usually involves networking with existing contacts and spreading the word through local advertising. A hardware store is highly dependent on local business from the community. So, partnering with other businesses and advertising your hardware store might help spread the word faster. For example, ask local restaurants, and other retail stores, if you can advertise in their store in exchange for a discount on products in your store.

Not only does this build goodwill in your local community, the advertising can be positioned more as a referral from the existing local business rather than paid advertising in a neutral medium, like radio or television.

How to keep customers coming back

Specialization and company culture are the best ways to differentiate yourself from the competition. Another way to stand out in the crowd is to set up a website, capture the names and email addresses of your customers, and send them daily DIY tips. These tips can (and probably should) come from your own personal experiences. They don’t have to be long emails, but something to keep you in the forefront of your customer’s minds so that when they need something you sell, they think of you first.

STEP 9: Create your business website

After defining your brand and creating your logo the next step is to create a website for your business.

While creating a website is an essential step, some may fear that it’s out of their reach because they don’t have any website-building experience. While this may have been a reasonable fear back in 2015, web technology has seen huge advancements in the past few years that makes the lives of small business owners much simpler.

Here are the main reasons why you shouldn’t delay building your website:

  • All legitimate businesses have websites – full stop. The size or industry of your business does not matter when it comes to getting your business online.
  • Social media accounts like Facebook pages or LinkedIn business profiles are not a replacement for a business website that you own.
  • Website builder tools like the GoDaddy Website Builder have made creating a basic website extremely simple. You don’t need to hire a web developer or designer to create a website that you can be proud of.

Recommended: Get started today using our recommended website builder or check out our review of the Best Website Builders.

Other popular website builders are: WordPressWIXWeeblySquarespace, and Shopify.

STEP 10: Set up your business phone system

Getting a phone set up for your business is one of the best ways to help keep your personal life and business life separate and private. That’s not the only benefit; it also helps you make your business more automated, gives your business legitimacy, and makes it easier for potential customers to find and contact you.

There are many services available to entrepreneurs who want to set up a business phone system. We’ve reviewed the top companies and rated them based on price, features, and ease of use. Check out our review of the Best Business Phone Systems 2024 to find the best phone service for your small business.

Recommended Business Phone Service: Phone.com

Phone.com is our top choice for small business phone numbers because of all the features it offers for small businesses and it’s fair pricing.

Is this Business Right For You?

This type of business is usually attractive to handymen, tradesmen, and those who enjoy home improvement activities. The owner should be able to advise customers on purchases and have experience with the products being sold in the store.

Long hours aren’t always necessary, but weekends might be. Having a flexible schedule helps, especially during the first few years of operation.

Want to know if you are cut out to be an entrepreneur?

Take our Entrepreneurship Quiz to find out!

Entrepreneurship Quiz

What happens during a typical day at a hardware store?

Day-to-day activities include meeting with customers on the floor and helping them source materials for their DIY projects. Checking inventory, making purchases from suppliers, and managing staff are also essential aspects of the job.

What are some skills and experiences that will help you build a successful hardware store?

Running a hardware store requires a strong business sense, but no specific degree or licensing other than local business or state licensing, if required in your state. Most hardware store owners, however, do have experience working for a hardware store, are former construction workers, contractors, handymen, or tradesmen.

What is the growth potential for a hardware store?

Hardware stores can be run as a small family-run or local shop or as a chain store. For example, Lowes, Home Depot, and other similar stores are large chain stores that operate all over the U.S. A small “mom and pop shop” may only have one location.

Take the Next Step

Find a business mentor

One of the greatest resources an entrepreneur can have is quality mentorship. As you start planning your business, connect with a free business resource near you to get the help you need.

Having a support network in place to turn to during tough times is a major factor of success for new business owners.

Learn from other business owners

Want to learn more about starting a business from entrepreneurs themselves? Visit Startup Savant’s startup founder series to gain entrepreneurial insights, lessons, and advice from founders themselves.

Resources to Help Women in Business

There are many resources out there specifically for women entrepreneurs. We’ve gathered necessary and useful information to help you succeed both professionally and personally:

  • Funding
  • Events
  • Guides
  • Support

If you’re a woman looking for some guidance in entrepreneurship, check out this great new series Women in Business created by the women of our partner Startup Savant.

What are some insider tips for jump starting a hardware store?

Location matters with this type of business, especially when you’re new and unknown. If possible, try to get trade accounts open with local tradesmen to establish a baseline revenue and steady income.

How and when to build a team

Unless you are confident in your abilities to run a one-person shop, you’ll probably have to open your business with a small staff of at least 3 people. Ideally, you’ll want a person who can man the floor and help customers, someone to do bookkeeping, and a manager.

Useful Links

Industry Opportunities

Real World Examples

Further Reading