Before Home Depot and Lowe’s took over the market, local hardware stores served as the hub for many communities. Yes, they sold hardware and building materials, but they also acted as a sort of general store.
I remember visiting these kinds of stores as a kid, where you buy a shovel, a mailbox, or duct tape, but also paper towels and maybe some barbecue supplies. Because these stores were local and locally operated, their owners had the option to stock what was needed.
Home Depot and Lowe’s, to be fair, stock every item named above, but they are impersonal stores, not community merchants, where the owners know most of the customers by sight. This is not a discussion about the big chains, just the reality of how the market has changed.
As of 2025, there are approximately 12,906 businesses classified as “hardware stores” in the U.S., according to IBISWorld.
The number of hardware store businesses has had a slightly negative growth rate in recent years, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of -0.6% between 2020 and 2025, the same IBISWorld report shared.
The percentage of hardware stores that are truly independent (mom and pop style) has declined over the decades, from 47 percent in 1992 to 42 percent by 2018, The Handbuilt City reported.
According to a 2024/2025 survey of independent home improvement retailers, 69 percent of respondents operated a single store, 47 percent were small stores (less than 10,000 square feet) and nearly half were located in rural areas, according to Hardware Retailing.
Among independent retailers in Q2 2025, only 38% reported year-over-year sales increases, compared to 37% that reported declines, while 25% reported flat sales, indicating a generally stagnant environment, the same study showed.
“The typical independent hardware store owner — the neighborhood Joe who makes your keys or sells you the paint — is turning 60 and his kids are in no rush to take over the store,” the North American Retail Hardware Association told the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
More retail:
That will lead to more store closures.
“It’s a huge issue that we’re focused on,” said Scott Wright, executive director of the Leadership Institute for the NRHA. “A lot of these retailers don’t have a succession plan to pass that on to the next generation or somebody within the company.”
Now, another local family hardware store will soon be closing its doors for good.
Hardware stores were a significant part of the community.Shutterstock” loading=”lazy” height=”540″ width=”960″ class=”yf-1gfnohs loader”/>
Hardware stores were a significant part of the community.Shutterstock
“For nearly 100 years, Tupelo Hardware was synonymous with the downtown area. Its location was a beacon for residents and tourists alike, its name in capitals, painted bright white atop the building at the corner of Main and Front streets,” shared the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal.
That will change on New Year’s Eve, December 31, when the store closes its doors for good.
The company shared the news on its Facebook page.
It is with heavy hearts that we would like to announce the closing of our historic downtown location at 114 W. Main Street. To all of our loyal customers and dedicated team members over the years, we want to wish you a sincere ‘THANK YOU’ for 100 memorable years in downtown Tupelo,” the company said.
But unlike what has happened to so many family-owned hardware stores, this is not a sad ending; it’s a new beginning.
“Our last day of daily business will be December 31st. Rest assured that this space and its historic place in the downtown community will be preserved and enhanced. If you haven’t had a chance to visit our new location on McCullough Boulevard, we invite you to stop by,” Tupelo Hardware added.
Closing the historic location was a tough decision, according to George Booth III, the third generation of the family to work at the store.
“If you Google Tupelo, Mississippi, the dot lands on the corner of Front and Main,” the younger Booth told the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. “This is downtown. And it’s hard to talk about; it’s hard to think about. But unfortunately, we have to close this location. Things have changed. The world is changing. And if you’re in retail, you have to make changes, and there’s no way around it.”
Booth’s great-grandfather opened Tupelo Hardware in 1926. His father, George Booth II, was part of the business all his life, but recently had to retire due to health issues. That was the impetus for the difficult decision to close the store, he told the newspaper.
“The city has an interest in making sure that downtown provides opportunities for its visitors and residents, and those opportunities really fall in line with the unique retail, hotel, bar and restaurant,” Booth told the Daily Journal.
“For the type of retail we’ve done and for as many years as we’ve done it, our customer base needs parking for large vehicles and trailers, and that’s something we can accommodate on McCullough.”
This closure is part of a larger trend of store closures and stores moving away from downtown.
From 1995 to 2021, more stores closed each year than opened. The trend has become popular as the “retail apocalypse,” according to Morgan Stanley.
Related: Home Depot, Lowe’s rival NABS files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Part of the change comes from population changes and more people working from home.
A typical office worker now spends about $2,000 to $4,600 less a year in inner cities, according to research by Stanford University economist Nicholas Bloom.
“U.S. retailers have announced more than 7,100 store closings through the end of November 2024. That’s a 69 percent jump from the same period last year,” GlobalData CEO Neil Saunders said on his LinkedIn page.
Don’t blame the internet or economic conditions for this.
“It’s easy to blame the economy for this. And it’s easy to blame online. And neither of those things should be completely dismissed. However, when you get under the skin of the closures, it’s clear that the root cause is usually the old failure to match demand,” he wrote.
Data from the Stanford Business School shows that the population has moved away from downtown, forcing moves like the one made by Tupelo Hardware.
“Using detailed microdata of households in the United States, we show that three-fifths of households that have left city centers in large cities have moved to the suburbs of the same city. This is likely explained by the rise of hybrid work, where employees still commute to the office several days a week. intact,” says the Stanford Business School report How Working from Home Reshapes Cities.
Related: 79-year-old appliance chain closes all locations, no bankruptcy
This story was originally published by TheStreet on December 7, 2025, where it first appeared in the Retail section. Add TheStreet as a favorite source by clicking here.
