Hatt’s Hardware

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Hatt’s Industrial Supplies and True Value Hardware

By Drewe Phinny Contributing Writer

Chip Clavier, President of Hatt’s Industrial Supplies, has a “ten-foot rule,” that means if an employee is within ten feet, he or she has to come up and say, “Hi, can I help you with your project?” That’s the kind of customer attention you won’t find at other places.

“How many times does that happen in a big box? We have hardware stuck in our blood. We value the customer’s time. We want them to have a quick and easy shopping experience,” Clavier said.

That includes carry-help to the car and other types of assistance that people appreciate. “We’re a throw-back,” he explained. “We have a lot of items from our industrial side that a typical hardware store would not have, but which sometimes people need.”

Hatt’s has a somewhat unconventional style that’s in a unique category. “It’s funny. When people come in to our store, they think it doesn’t look as big from the outside because we converted a lot of our warehouse space and different things into retail space. And so it has a different type of feel than a larger box store,” he explained.

Chip and his son Ryan, who is the Vice President of Sales, strike a careful managerial balance in running the business with equal attention to both sides of the equation.

“Ryan and I were weaned on the industrial supplies side,” he explained. “In that case, you have to go to the customer for their business. In retail, the customer comes to you, and we have to earn it by excelling at service, and doing the things the big boxes don’t do—personal service, honesty, knowing we’ll be here for you.” And as far as the growing DIY movement, Clavier said,“We have everything to fix up the home except the lumber and shingles. We’re not a home improvement center. That takes a lot more space.” They do have sanding belts and Benjamin Moore and True Value Paints, among other items. “We run both businesses out of Thorndale,” Clavier explained. “We service southeastern Pennsylvania, Delaware, southern Jersey and northern Maryland through our industrial supply business… and we have True Value Hardware, where we primarily sell to Coatesville, Thorndale, Downingtown and surrounding areas.”

Hatt’s was founded in 1956, by Paul Hatt as Hatt’s Industrial Supply. Clavier has been with the company for 46 years. He explained, “We purchased the business from Don and Char Hatt in 2000. He was a good businessman and mentor. I learned a lot from him.”

Hatt’s actually didn’t become a hardware store until that time. Before that, the emphasis was on industrial supplies. The main customers were steel mills, paper mills, any type of manufacturing, woodworking and metalworking.

“Eighty percent of our business is industrial supplies and twenty percent is the hardware store,” Clavier explained. “I think most people will know us by Hatt’s True Value Hardware. That’s the retail side. The other side is wholesale distribution.”

Two of the major store expansion areas over the years have been the paints and garden departments.

Chip and Ryan Clavier, as well as general manager Slade Staniech are proud of their years of hard work and success in such a competitive environment.

“We grow every year and we have two Home Depots and a Lowes within fifteen minutes,” Clavier said. “We grow through service and taking pride in helping customers out.

Our number-one focus is attention to the customer. And next, it’s keeping our stores and product lines up to date. And more recently, it’s been the supply chain challenge and keeping items in stock.”

Unlike a typical hardware store, which will have all product in retail, Hatt’s has a warehouse. During the pandemic, they were open. “We sell a lot of janitorial supplies for our industrial side, and when people couldn’t get toilet paper and roll towels, we had it.”

On a larger scale, Hatt’s deals with Fortune 500 companies, major steel mills, woodworkers, cabinetry makers, manufacturing companies, and commercial supply.

With all the technical terms and related numbers, Chip and Ryan came up with a pretty basic description of the Hatt’s story: “Eighty percent of our business is commercial industrial and twenty percent is retail hardware. But we’re known in the community because we’re a friendly hardware store, your local hometown hardware store. We’re growing by providing the old-fashioned customer service that people strive for, no matter what size the business we’re in.”

With Hatt’s True Value, help is truly around the corner.

Hatt’s Industrial Supplies & True Value Hardware 2803 E. Lincoln Highway, Thorndale, PA 19372 (610) 384-1954 Monday to Saturday 7:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.