Last night the North American Hardware & Paint Association hosted its Young Retailer of the Year Awards. The event was held during the Independent Home Improvement Conference in Marco Island, Fla. Joel Pletch, of Walkerton Home Hardware in southwestern Ontario, was the Canadian recipient of the award. Under his guidance, the store saw big increases. These included a 426 percent growth in the store’s tool category and a 300 percent increase in overall store transactions—all from a store that’s only 3,300 square feet in size.
Pletch (shown here at the awards event with Sherri Amos, director of dealer support for Home Hardware Stores Ltd.) was store manager when he got the news of the award in the spring. Since then, he has also become owner of the store.
