Shared Wisdom & Insights

Our April Mastermind tackled the thing everyone’s buzzing about—AI. But instead of buzzwords, our GMs and marketers broke down what’s actually working (and what’s still clunky) when it comes to integrating AI into real-world hardware retail workflows.

Another month, another round of game-changing discussions at our Hardware Innovators Masterminds! In March, our marketing and general manager groups tackled some of the biggest challenges hardware retailers are currently facing.

This month’s Hardware Innovators Mastermind was a wealth share of knowledge. Our Marketing folks talked through sales opportunities outside of Red Hot Buys, and the General Managers spoke about inventory ordering, discounting, and discontinuing tips. Let’s dive in!

This month’s Hardware Innovators Mastermind talked about big wins and losses for 2024. Marketers and general managers discussed what’s been done successfully and something to ditch for 2025. Let’s dive in!

This month’s Hardware Innovators Mastermind covered a lot of ground: preparing for a new year of marketing and navigating winter staffing challenges. Marketers explored the importance of fully fleshed-out marketing budgets and content strategies, while General Managers weighed the pros and cons of cutting hours during the slower season.

This month’s Hardware Innovators Mastermind tackled two hot topics: going digital and creating better leadership strategies. Marketers dove into all things digital circulars, while General Managers explored leadership org charts, coaching to core values, and how to navigate year-end financial strategies (what to do with the profits). Oh, and everyone’s still buzzing about the simplicity of using Linktree as a website. Ready to dive in?

The holiday season was on everyone’s mind at this month’s Mastermind. Marketers shared holiday flier designs, discussed if Black Friday was overrated, how to drive more sales during the seasonally slow months (Mums!?), tips for hosting holiday events, and new product ideas (like Poinsettias) for special times of the year. General Managers debated whether or not blackout dates for holiday PTO requests were a good idea, shared some blackout templates, discussed policy language used in conversations about employees wanting a raise, and talked about potential benefits to offer leadership positions.

Our Hardware Innovators are a group of people who are dedicated and determined to see their hardware stores succeed, stay relevant, and continue to thrive well after our Innovators are gone. That’s why they show up consistently, are present, and are willing to ask and answer the hard questions. This call was no exception!

Our Masterminds always have amazing takeaways, and this Mastermind was no different! We had marketers and general managers chime in on what’s been working for them. (Hint: this Mastermind talked a lot about building relationships with contractors through events, bringing in surprising products that our Innovators can’t keep on the shelves, and so much more!)

July’s Mastermind discussions were jam-packed with helpful insights and information for the Marketing and General Managers. We had a full house at both meetings, and we were able to dive into the weeds, come up with tangible solutions to some of the problems our Innovators were facing, and create a sense of unity in issues or concerns that hardware stores across the country are facing. Let’s dive in!