Costello's Ace Hardware Opens Two New Retail Locations
The retailer added 67 stores to its national count, showcasing new specialized power and BBQ merchandising layouts.
Updated on Oct. 20, 2026 in Openings & Closings
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Costello's Ace Hardware has expanded its national retail footprint with the opening of two new locations in Pennsylvania and Virginia. These additions bring the company's total store count to 67 units.
Why it matters
The expansion reflects the company's ongoing strategy of scaling its physical footprint within the hardware and home improvement sector. Operators should note how these layouts integrate specialized merchandising to drive localized foot traffic.
The retailer operates a total of 67 stores across six states following these two openings. The new sites comprise 11,000 square feet in West Chester, Pennsylvania, and 12,000 square feet in Henrico, Virginia.
The players
Costello's Ace Hardware
A hardware retail chain founded in 1973 that operates 67 stores across six states.
Kathryn Menend
The store manager who leads operations at the new Henrico, Virginia location.
The details
The new West Chester store introduces Ace Hardware's ELEVATE BBQ and Power merchandising layouts, which focus on targeted consumer demand for specific home project categories. These standardized floor plans are designed to optimize inventory throughput and customer engagement for smaller-format retail hardware spaces.
Timeline
October 9, 2026: The Henrico location opened for business.
October 23-25, 2026: West Chester grand opening celebration.
November 6-8, 2026: Henrico grand opening celebration.
Market Landscape
The expansion follows the industry trend of implementing specialized store-within-a-store merchandising layouts to increase sales density. These moves highlight a shift toward optimized floor plans designed for specific high-growth project categories.
Operators in the home improvement space should monitor how new layout designs, such as ELEVATE BBQ and Power, affect local market share and customer engagement. Tracking the performance of these standardized formats can provide a benchmark for inventory and floor-space allocation strategies.
The takeaway
Retailers should track how the introduction of specialized, project-focused layouts influences local customer purchasing patterns. Benchmarking square-footage efficiency against these new 11,000 to 12,000-square-foot models can help owners identify potential gaps in their own floor-plan productivity.
Further reading
For more on industry growth patterns, visit the Openings & Closings section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by HBS Dealer.
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