Grand Opening Success and Record Sales Powered by Epicor Propello
You have one chance to make a first impression. So, when Lakewood Ace Hardware opened its doors in September 2024, all hands were on deck. The grand opening must-haves were in place: cashiers, floor associates, exciting giveaways, stocked shelves, pricing promotions—and Epicor Propello.
Steven Prendergast, one of the owners of Lakewood Ace Hardware and new to the retail world, details the role Propello plays in day-to-day operations, supporting the flurry of sales activity during opening weekend and beyond.
The community of Lakewood, California, was primed for a new hardware store, with many of the city’s residents preferring a locally owned shopping experience versus patronizing a big-box retailer. With anticipation building for opening day, Prendergast wanted to hit the ground running in order to meet expected demand. A key first step: deploying a modern retail management solution to help enable business continuity and growth.
”We knew we were going with Epicor as the Ace Hardware partnership runs deep with a 35-year history,” Prendergast explains. “Propello gave us all the desired features and functionality with the added benefits of the cloud, such as reliable uptime, the flexibility to connect from anywhere, and the ability to stay current with automatic updates.”
As Lakewood Ace Hardware was Prendergast’s first retail venture, he needed a retail management solution that would help deliver ease of use for all employees—from front-facing cashiers to back-office personnel. “Propello took the guesswork out of aligning with Ace Hardware’s product terminology and processes,” he shares. “The platform’s tight integration with the Ace Hardware product catalog, Ace Rewards, and back-end workflows, such as purchase orders, allowed us to deliver a convenient, personal customer experience from day one.”
Several months before opening its doors to the general public, Lakewood Ace Hardware held a soft opening for family and friends. In preparation, the Epicor team was on site to help ensure that the Propello implementation would go smoothly and to provide training to employees. The dedicated support continued on grand opening weekend and beyond, with Epicor experts providing hands-on guidance to cashiers, associates, and Prendergast, along with daily check-in calls to address any questions.
“The Epicor Propello team was phenomenal, and we had a very supported rollout,” Prendergast says. “On a scale of one to 10, I give the implementation a 20 due to the constant communication, quick response, and clear commitment to our store’s success.”
The store uses nearly every aspect of Propello, including functionality to support inventory management, financials, analytics and reporting, eCommerce, and point of sale. As a result, Lakewood Ace Hardware connects important operational processes to help drive efficiency and time savings, along with the ability to help the business grow in a myriad of ways:
A new employee started yesterday, and we had them up and running at the register with Propello's point of sale within 15 minutes.
On the first day of the grand opening, the store had twice as many sales transactions as the previous Saturdays, with more than 400 individual sales. Prendergast credits the tight integration between Propello and Ace Hardware for contributing to this success, enabling a stellar in-store experience for all who walked in the doors.
Propello allows me, as a store owner, to better understand and keep track of the business from anywhere. And that level of insight and control is invaluable.
“A new employee started yesterday and we had them up and running at the register with Propello point of sale within 15 minutes,” Prendergast concludes. “Propello allows me, as a store owner, to better understand and keep track of the business from anywhere. And that level of insight and control is invaluable.”
