Core Values as Cornerstones

I love how our stores all embody the same Core Values, leading to a general culture of empowerment, fun, creativity and friendship; yet each store has its own style, its own take on that culture and how it embodies the Core Values. Each store team uses that empowerment to do their own thing, to better the experience for themselves and for our customers, in their own way.

If you work in a place with intentional culture, then this may still seem remarkable, but also understandable and even commonplace. However, if you have had experience with unintentional, unempowering or even negative company culture this might just blow your mind: The Willow Glen team decided to run this contest all on their own. It's not something the corporate team or the owner said to do. It's not something any of the other stores are doing. It's not something ACE suggested doing.

It's just a great idea that Willow Glen came up with on their own and implemented.  They made a raffle jar out of an old paint can (Innovation!), showcased some of our chalk paint, wrote our core values on the can and put it out there.

The thing that makes my heart sing about this is that at Hassett Hardware we know we have an entire company full of innovators and makers, and we act like it. I don't know the whole story behind how this particular great idea came into being, but my educated guess is that someone said to the store manager, "Hey, I think this would work," and the store manager probably said, "Great, let's try it." It's completely possible (and not unusual) that the person who thought of it may have just gone ahead and done it. 

We believe in each other and everybody knows it. What's the best thing that could happen? They try it. What's the worst thing that could happen? They try it. The best and worst are one in the same, because someone took an idea they had and implemented it. They experimented. They trusted themselves and the process and the fact that their idea was totally in line with the core values. Whether it works or not, is secondary. When the core values are used as the cornerstones for how we all act, we are each our own boss, navigating by a compass that always points in the right direction.

-Jocelyn Lovelle

Home From the Hardware Store

 

We stumbled upon a gem of a book that is right up our alley: “Home from the Hardware Store” by Stephen Antonson and Kathleen Hackett.

The cover features bolts of different sizes, screwed and stacked together to make rustic, but also beautiful candlestick holders. Who would have thought? I certainly wouldn’t have, and I spend more time in hardware stores than most. I also possess a good eye for design, but that isn’t enough to have come up with these original and inspired ideas. 

 

The creativity inside covers ground ranging from practical to whimsical to inspiring. What I like most is the combination of items we regularly see in the context of hardware - useful things, meant for a certain purpose - seen from a different point of view; stretched and modified into something of beauty and sometimes usefulness, but not in the way we expect. I love how this stretches my own thinking of what is expected and what is possible and how the one often keeps us from discovering the other.

 Note: All images taken from "Home from the Hardware Store" © Lesley Unruh

Succulent Classes are Back!

Last fall, we held a succulent wreath class - the first ever class at our new Redwood City location!

We had such a good time, we're hosting two more succulent classes on Saturday, February 13. Tiffany Polli, from Succulent Gardens will be back as our teacher and we've got several design options from which to choose!

Any of these classes will make a fabulous Valentine's Day gift!

10:30 AM:
Small Wooden Heart Box: $65








NOON:
Small Wooden Heart Box: $65
Small 6"x6" Succulent Box Wall Art: $65
Medium 6"x12" Succulent Box Wall Art: $90
Large 12"x12" Succulent Box Wall Art: $125
Medium 10" Succulent Wreath: $90

To sign up, please visit our store at 348 Woodside Plaza.

For more information, please contact info@hassetthardware.com.

Note: All images © Succulent Gardens

Hassett's Top 10 Moments From 2015

Hassett Hardware had a great year in 2015. We opened a new store, deepened our commitment to our culture and had a good time together. Here are some of the highlights:

Ribbon Cutting at Our New Redwood City Location with Mayor Jeff Gee

The Willow Glen Team During Spirit Week

ACE Ladies at Our Contractor Breakfast in San Mateo

San Mateo Shows Their Support for Trades People Day

Richard and Eric Hassett at the Grand Opening of Their Fifth Store in Redwood City

The Redwood City Team Gets Dressed Up for Their One Year Anniversary

Team Spirit During Spirit Week in Willow Glen

San Mateo Shows Some Love for Their Store

Our First Class in the Redwood City Garden Center

The Holiday Party 

Mosaic Table, Handmade With Love

One birthday a few years ago, our inventory manager shared this image with me. As part of her birthday celebration, her family decided to make her a mosaic table. The intent and thought and beauty around the making of this gift is so true and beautiful, I wanted to share it with you. Her father and daughter, ex-husband and his family, her boyfriend, and everyone’s significant others came together on her birthday, bringing with them the supplies needed to create her gift.

They brought the necessary broken tiles, mirrors, vases and whatnot, and they also brought something else: A memento that carried meaning for each one of them, to include in the table, to be there forever and remind Maureen of the love that is all around her. Her father included a little plastic toy bike, her daughter included a mug she’d had in her college days. An earring of a beloved and passed brother was added, and for each family member, a coin made during their year of birth was pressed into the design.

Made using recycled materials and love, this gift is kind to both people and the environment. This can be a fun project for any age and a great way to upcycle and preserve things you love - chipped flower pots, old mugs, antique mirrors from a grandmother's vanity or hand mirror, personal tokens and anything else you can think of!

Other ingredients you'll need:
Table
Weldbond or Thin-Set Mortar
Grout (There are lots of choices - you can get pre-colored grout, or add acrylic paint for color)
Rags
Trowel
Grout Sealer 

Adapted from the original article first published on thegreenextract.com and care2.com, 2011.

Five Star Yelp Review

Our Redwood City Store Where Myles Works

I've been inundated lately with kind words about our teams - at all our stores - and I thought it would be fun to post a series of Yelp reviews spotlighting individual employees. 

The owners, the corporate/support team, the managers - we can all do everything within our power to create a great culture that strives to give the best customer service possible, but it's the people on the floor, day in and day out, who do the work of greeting each customer with a smile and helping them as best as they can, who truly create the culture in our stores about which I keep hearing so many good things. So kudos to all of our energetic, dedicated, smart, loyal, thoughtful and helpful team. Here's the first in our series - a shout out to Myles in Redwood City:

Miles helped me out and I really have to say he went above and beyond. I needed to rig a custom stabilizer for my camera and Miles helped me explore several options, eventually settling on an outstanding solution. Miles also helped me cut the pieces necessary in store, on the spot. Very positive experience! Also the store is very clean and there were no lines. Winning!

Our Favorite Things

The store managers and the support team, along with both of the owners, have a weekly conference call where we catch each other up on important news, ideas, products, sales, happenings. Within all of this information sharing is a question that gets posed to each of the managers, every week: "What is your favorite thing that happened in your store this week?" The question may vary to what employee had the greatest impact, or what customer experience was the best, but it all comes down to a particular moment that stands out as exceptional.

One of the things I love about this question is the managers always have something to say, and they often have more than one story they want to share. It's one thing to talk about core values and creating intentional company culture. It's another thing entirely to live and breathe it, day in and day out, and each week have something tangible to share with others that walks the talk of integrity, or great customer awareness or being results driven (just a few of our core values).

We hear from customers very regularly that our stores feel different, that the sales team actually seems to care about customers' projects and about them as people. We hear a lot that we have exceptional customer service and that we feel homey. This kind of feedback is always a morale booster and what I love about our team is that that kind of praise and enthusiasm comes from the inside as well. Which is why customers feel the way they do about us. You can't fake genuine and authentic. It has to come, one favorite thing at a time.

-Jocelyn Lovelle