A small town home improvement, DIY and garden needs store nailing best in the country, has left the victors taking a “long time to get through the supermarket” due to public congratulations.
Golden Bay Hammer Hardware beat 41 other stores to take home Store of the Year on 31 July at the annual Hammer Hardware conference in Hamilton. Co-owners of the Tākaka store, Tarnae and Gavin Palmer, were “excited and humbled” to be awarded the gong after making the top four, three times during their five years at the helm.
Gavin says it recognised their efforts to build the business and grow the Hammer Hardware brand, their “strong focus” on customer service, and their 10 staff members.
“Some key stuff that we wanted to do with this business was community support, sponsorships, being a vital part within the community, and offering more employment,” he says.
“When we took on this business, a real key thing for us in growing the business was to offer more employment in Golden Bay.
“Five years ago, we had four staff and a part-timer and now we sit at eight [plus Tarnae and Gavin].”
He says the growth has also included cropping up a garden centre at the beginning of the year.
“We're always evolving our shop, we get great feedback from our customer base which has grown from day one, and our customers appreciate change and being ready for every weather event possible,” he says.
“Everyone has been so excited for us, the great thing is all the customers you talk to who’ve heard through the grapevine, they're always saying it’s about the team, the hard work, effort, and building [the store] forward.”
Tarnae says the Store of the Year award was judged on market sales across the store’s 24 departments, as well as store layout, stock levels, range and pricing.
They acknowledged their staff and customers, and now plan to go at it hammer and tongs to further bolster their business under its new winning status.
