• by Karl Greenberg , June 3, 2015

Hardware cooperative Ace Hardware has signed a multi-year deal that makes the retailer-owned chain “Official Hardware Store of the PGA Tour.” 

Tom Wade, PGA Tour chief commercial officer, said in a statement that the Tour's business, including the preparation and operation of tournaments and the daily operation and maintenance of facilities, will use Ace Hardware products and services. "Ace will help us substantially with everything we do, and we see a great opportunity to benefit both parties.”   

The parties say planners of the PGA Tour, Champions Tour, Web.com Tour, PGA Tour Latinoamérica, PGA Tour Canada and PGA Tour China, and the PGA Tour's TPC Network, will have access to products through Ace.  

Ace, for its part, is also airing commercials during live PGA Tour telecasts on Golf Channel and NBC Sports, as well as during ancillary programming. It also has advertising on PGATour.com.  

On the player-endorsement side, Ace announced in April a multi-year sponsorship of PGA Tour player, and six-time winner Hunter Mahan. Mahan is appearing in the brand’s 2015 “Golf Swing Away” television commercial, which began airing in April to promote Ace’s Free Store Pickup program. It also aired at stores, per the company. Mahan also wears the Ace logo on his golf apparel during tournaments. 

Earlier this year, the hardware brand, which has over 4,800 stores around the world, launched a new program called the Ace Center for Excellence, whereby Ace shares customer service strategies with businesses and organizations worldwide. The company seems to know what it's talking about. Ace just won top accolades again in J.D. Power’s 2015 U.S. Home Improvement Retailer Store Satisfaction Study. The study ranked Ace Hardware “Highest in Customer Satisfaction among Home Improvement Retail Stores” for the ninth year in a row. 

The study is based on responses from nearly 3,000 consumers who purchased home improvement products or services in the previous 12 months. Ace Hardware ranked highest among major retailers with an overall satisfaction index score of 807 on a 1,000-point scale. According to consumers, Ace performs particularly well in the categories of staff and service, as well as store facility. After Ace Hardware is Lowe's, and Menards. Below the retailer average score are The Home Depot, True Value and Sears.

Retailer loyalty has a huge influence in hardware retailer success, the study finds. It reports that nearly a quarter of surveyed customers said they shop one home improvement retailer exclusively, and 84% of those customers shop at only one location. And satisfaction among customers who shop one retailer exclusively is higher than among those who shop multiple retailers. Thus, notes the study, retailers can remain competitive and increase their share of wallet by converting customers who shop multiple stores into customers who shop exclusively at their store. 

The study says 46% of customers who shop one retailer “definitely will” make their next home improvement purchase at that same retailer, and a similar proportion (47%) say they “definitely will” recommend that retailer.