BizBeat: Westlake's undergoing storewide renovation

The Westlake ACE Hardware store on Jefferson City's Missouri Boulevard has recently undergone remodeling and store reorganization. The store also now carries the Stihl brand of outdoor equipment but will still offer the same helpful and knowledgeable staff.
The Westlake ACE Hardware store on Jefferson City's Missouri Boulevard has recently undergone remodeling and store reorganization. The store also now carries the Stihl brand of outdoor equipment but will still offer the same helpful and knowledgeable staff.

Westlake ACE Hardware is known for its customer service, and that was a big consideration when planning the current remodeling of its Jefferson City store.

Westlake is in the final stages of giving the more than 40-year-old store an updated look and a new layout.

Store Manager Randy Miller said the store's layout has changed to a "shotgun" design, with a wide aisle in the middle of the store, giving customers and associates the ability to locate products quicker.

"The customer reaction has been great," Miller said. "It's so much easier to shop. It's easy for them to see products and much easier for our associates to help them."

A new lobby area and new registers are aimed at getting customers quickly checked out, he said.

The remodel also includes some new flooring.

"We really are very close to being completed now," Miller said. "We still have some outside work to do, (including) painting for new sign, which hopefully we'll get done next week."

Customers also will notice an expanded hardware department, with a lot more small screws, bolts and hard-to-find specialty items, Miller said. New product lines also have been added, including Stihl chainsaws, trimmers, blowers and battery-operated products for homeowners.

The grilling sections, both grills and accessories, also has been expanded, he said.

Some of the "slower-moving" items in the store have been removed, but Miller said they can still order those items.

Store hours will remain the same: 7 a.m.-9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday.