DETROIT BROTHERS OPEN THIRD TRUE VALUE HARDWARE STORE IN CITY’S LIVERNOIS CORRIDOR

September 06, 2013

Shoppers should come celebrate AAA True Value’s grand opening Sept. 6-7, where they can:

DETROIT, Sept. 6, 2013 — Detroit’s Livernois Corridor just got a new partner in its efforts to revitalize this once, and future, vibrant neighborhood with the opening of AAA True Value’s newest retail hardware store. With this opening, AAA True Value owners and Detroit natives Alan and Steve Mansour revived an old post office, and neighborhood eyesore, and turned it into a beautiful, modern space for DIYers to find the tools they need.

Open for business now at 17400 Livernois Ave., AAA True Value will host a grand opening celebration for the community from Friday, Sept. 6 through Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013. Store hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.

“We grew up here,” Steve said. “Many merchants have left for the suburbs, and people know it. They come in here with big smiles on their faces. They thank us for being here. We love that, and we love helping them.”

The event will feature great sale prices throughout the store and offer multiple live demonstrations, including a demo from True Value paint. A kid’s band will provide live entertainment, and there will be free giveaways, food, drinks and much more. The ribbon cutting ceremony will occur at 10 a.m. Friday, Sept. 6. The Mansour brothers also have stores at 11616 Whittier St, Detroit, MI 48224 and 8749 Joy Rd, Detroit, MI 48204.

Indeed, AAA True Value is a welcome breath of fresh air for the neighbors who previously had to travel many miles to find a hardware store. By opening the doors in their third store, the brothers now employ about 24 Detroit residents.

“Here at AAA True Value, we’ve created a one-stop destination where male and female shoppers can find all the great products, expert advice and inspiration they need to get their small repair and home-improvement projects done right,” Alan said.

The locally-owned 8,500-square-foot store will keep 45 percent of the dollars spent in the store in the local economy, compared to only 14 percent by national chains or franchises.

“We’re excited with the opportunity to provide the city of Detroit and the Livernois neighborhood with a store that offers people in the community one place to go for all of their hardware and home-improvement needs, which is especially important in a neighborhood, such as Livernois, where revitalization is needed,” Steve said.

A success story themselves, the inner-city kids turned multiple business owners recognize they could have left Detroit this time around, and maybe bought a conventional retail space instead of the location they chose: an old post office left to rot in the inner city for 17 years. But after 26 years of operating hardware stores in the metro area, Steve and Alan said they can’t imagine leaving their home base — and their dedicated customers.

About True Value Company
True Value Company, headquartered in Chicago, is one of the world’s largest retailer-owned wholesale hardware cooperatives with gross billings of $1.9 billion and revenue of $1.4 billion in 2012. Additional information on True Value and its retail identities is available at www.truevaluecompany.com.