Think about how many times that has to happen just to cover the monthly rent nut, and cover salary(s). Amazing there are any still left... those that do probably own the building and the business or they could never get into the black.

Hardware stores of yore
 

About 15 years ago we lived near a hardware store named for the family who owned it for 3 generations, back then. Finkles Hardware. What a trip that place was and still is. Its in several buildings and each building supposedly houses different categories of hardwareness, although then as now I have a hard time distinguishing what is where and why, but that's part of the fun of it. Makes whatever you are buying a bit of a treasure hunt. The cool part was they used what seemed like an entire block of basements belonging to other buildings to house there collection of every conceivable piece of hardware you could ever want or need. Nails sold by the pound in bags; same with screws, nuts and bolts, it was like walking the catacombs. Corridors of floor to ceiling shelving under brick barrel vaulted ceilings made of what could have been ship ballast from the 18th and 19 century. Most of the buildings around them are from that time. The bigger buildings were ramshackle warehouse type buildings, that housed mostly the steel & iron stock and most piping.
I pretty much did my entire 3 bedroom 2.5 bath house from them. Copper pipes, wiring, electrical boxes, ovens, stoves, dishwaters all the plumbing fixtures (Kohler), steel I beams, wooden dowels, tons of metric stuff for several German and Swedish cars and on the list would go. The place was a basic must go before Saturday kind of place otherwise you didn't get back home for many hours. The son who was in his late 60s maybe even in his 70s could find anything you needed and if he didn't have it he'd order it for you and deliver it. Love this place. It's still going now in the 4th generation by his grand daughter. She's as hands on as her grandfather was. Her older cousin would never use the cash register, he could add two pages and more in his head and not be off a penny; tax included. He had loads of fun in AC, but that's another story..and then some.

Here's a link you hardware guys might enjoy reading and the pictures are spot on.
Finkle's hardware in Lambertville, started as scrapyard, survives test of time | NJ.com

Have fun.
Box store, nah, don't need no stinkin box store with this treasure still alive and thriving. We're so lucky!

Another Mom and Pop hardware story:
Within a week we go two identical clothing irons in that needed repair, which was my job. One just needed a cord, but the other one was roached and needed a factory replacement, which i arranged for. I fixed the one that just needed a cord, and the lady who owned it came in to get it. Mike, my co-worker, waited on her when she came in. "Hey Pat, the lady is here to pick up her iron." I poked my head out and said, "That's no lady, that's Mrs' Stormont!" and picked up the roached-out iron and threw it over their heads and it crashed into the aisle behind them. Mike said, "That's $3.95 plus tax, m'am You want me to put it in a bag for you?" She was totally cool with it, but there were three or four other people in the store who just stared in disbelief. Good for us our boss never learned of our shenanigans or we would have been fired.

I frequent two local old time hardware stores. They've both been in business for over 100 years. They value my business, and stock the most amazing hard to find stuff that you would never ever find anywhere else. I spend literally thousands at one of the places each year. They give me free hats with their logo embroidered on them. I figure that's a pretty fair deal.

This is very satisfying to read through. The family run neighborhood business still thrives!!

Last big, real hardware store I remember was Pay-n-Pak. Otherwise, we'd go to the local farmers co-op and pick up stuff. Nails, screws, fencing, concrete, hand tools, odd fittings for tractors and implements.

You know, farm stuff.

I have a great old hardware store down the street. It's the one Clint Eastwood went to in Gran Torino. Pointe Hardware:

http://o3.aolcdn.com/dims-shared/dim...dc86a401845fc3

http://pointehardware.com/wp-content...done-Clint.jpg