Three generations run the 135-year-old company in Healdsburg

Customer service is the critical resource that has kept Garrett Hardware in business for 135 years.

In 1888 the store was first called Cook & Garrett until AW Garrett took over when his partner retired. The Mascherini-Matteri family are the fourth owners.

“We are the oldest operating business in Healdsburg – 135 years running,” said Rod Matteri, vice president. He took over the day-to-day operations of the two hardware stores in December 2022 when his mother wanted to reduce her responsibilities.

Matteri attributes his family’s success to two things. “We have the customers who are our bosses. We need to give customers the absolute best experience when they walk through the door. And our second greatest asset is our (almost 90) employees.”

Through training, training and more training, employees excel in customer service and know the products on the shelves.

“Ace has a whole range of data. One key statistic is that when a customer is greeted when they walk in, there is a 54% chance they will spend more money on that trip,” Matteri said.

Matteri, 58, is sandwiched between his mother, Carole Mascherini, and his daughter Jordan Matteri in this family business.

“Honestly, while Jordan manages the marketing budget, I just leave her alone and let her do her thing. She is a lot smarter than me in that regard,” Matteri said. “As far as my mother is concerned, we were quite lucky. We never butted heads.”

When he sold SBI Building Materials and told his mother he was retiring, she said, not so fast. Mascherini stepped back from running the hardware stores in Windsor and Healdsburg when her son took over.

Mascherini, 82, bought the Healdsburg store in 1991; becoming the first woman to own an Ace Hardware store. She is one of the reasons why the jingle is no longer “The Helpful Hardware Guy” but is now “The Helpful Hardware Guys.”

“Everyone thinks Ace is a franchise. It’s a cooperative. The store owners own the cooperative,” explains Mascherini, who retains the title of CEO.

She had worked in the hair salon, while other family members played important roles in the construction industry. The former taught her the service side of a business, while construction introduced her to the materials the industry uses.

Against the advice of those in Ace’s upper echelon, Mascherini purchased two lots next to the Healdsburg store. One is for lumber, the other houses a home improvement store, the Gift Horse, which she says resembles a small Macy’s. This is where Mascherini spends most of her time.

The Gift Horse is known for its elaborate seasonal decorations, whether it’s Halloween, Christmas or summer. It’s a place where you can browse for yourself or for others. Gift wrapping is even an option.

What happens at all locations is paramount: offering customers what they want.

“We set up a whole division, the supply point. We do a lot of repairs; on saws, tractors, lawn mowers. It just goes on and on,” Mascherini said. This is available in both stores.

The Healdsburg store even has a seafood department, which is ideal since it’s about three miles from Lake Sonoma.

In 2017, the original store was named the ‘coolest hardware store’ by Ace.

The family purchased the Windsor location more than ten years ago. It is smaller than the store in Healdsburg, but the plant nurseries are the same size.

How the stores will develop in the future will be determined by the next trend.

“I think there will always be a need for a hardware store. I think it is secondary to the supermarket,” said Mascherini.

Jordan Matteri, in charge of marketing, also has a full-time job at a winery. However, her first job was as a cashier at the Healdsburg location.

“That experience was my foundation for customer service and experience. Over the years at family dinners, while I was building my own career, I would hear my grandmother and father talking, so I always felt like I had my finger on the pulse,” Matteri said.

“When I returned to Healdsburg in 2023, now with seven years of marketing experience, it was a natural progression to start consulting for the store. It started with conversations with Dad during our long runs, exchanging ideas, and eventually it became a formal role in the team.

She does not rule out becoming more involved. However, Matteri acknowledges that she still has more to learn about the business management side of the operation.

“Continuing the family legacy and keeping the store deeply rooted in the community is absolutely important to me,” said Matteri. “I feel there is a great responsibility to maintain what my grandmother built and to meet the expectations of our customers.”