Old idea in a new guise

Housewares were among the core categories stocked by American hardware stores some years ago. They helped such retailers become the top destination for consumers and were specially attractive to women. This was particularly true in smaller towns and suburban areas, where hardware stores were among the larger, more important retailers. Their housewares sections were customer-friendly, offering one-stop shopping for the entire family.This changed as the result of Home Depot's sudden growth. The company concentrated heavily on male customers, with warehouse-style displays of tools, hardware, electricals and plumbing, etc.To compete more effectively with Home Depot and the revigorated Lowe's, hardware retailers scaled down or completely eliminated housewares, using the free space for product categories typical of DIY superstores instead. They felt they had to be perceived as experts in male-oriented products, even though their stores were not as massive as their rivals'. The growth of mass merchants such as Wal-Mart, Kmart and Target, which promoted housewares on a grand scale, also encouraged retailers to stick to their basic hardware inventory.However, in recent years there has been a turnaround: hardware dealers have again begun to stock housewares, having woken up to the fact that female shoppers must be courted more aggressively. The trend has been encouraged by the increasing number of female heads of households and by the fact that many women find warehouse DIY stores simply intimidating.There have been changes in the range of housewares stocked by today's hardware stores, however. Basic categories are in many cases being left to the competition: low-end kitchen gadgets to supermarkets, small appliances to mass merchants and speciality chains. The focus tends to be on storage products, outdoor cooking and cleaning supplies, as in many DIY superstores. Modern paint departments geared to style and colour also appeal to female customers. Storage products have always been sold by hardware stores, but sales have been boosted by improved marketing and merchandising where the focus is on female customers. What is more, retailers have realised that more flair is needed to attract women into their stores. One excellent example of merchandising housewares in an up-market ambience is provided by Restoration Hardware, a listed chain (above).Many hardware retailers and independent DIY store operators are converting their outlets into specialist stores which…