Ace Hardware on the Beach — Attraction in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea

Today was a tough day for me I experienced my car key breaking off of my old key fob and it was nearly impossible to turn my car on without the key fob in the proper position when attempting to turn on my vehicle.... After over 50 attempts i finally got the car to start but was in a pickle because i couldnt turn the car off and back on without a new housing for my key, transmitter and the fob. Just when i thought all was lost through the graces of Bonnie and Ed at Beach Ace Hardware i saw a light at the end of the tunnel. I experienced the highest level of customer service I have seen in quite sometime especially since the pandemic always had people in defense mode because of the multiple factors behind wearing masks and just flat out being rude because they were fed up with unruly customers. BUT NOT ME!!!! I called and from the heavens came Bonnie from Beach Ace Hardware to save thr day! She reassured me and had me come in to purchase a new key housing that was almost impossible to find! Upon entering the store the whole team went above and beyond to help me resolve this dilemma. I worked directly with Ed who walked me through the process of how the details of my broken key effected why my car wouldnt turn on. He immediately got to work with changing my fob and providing me with a while new key, a new casing, and transition of my transmitter to the new key. Talk about the right team for the job! I I am beyond grateful for the time and patience that was provided to me by Bonnie, Ed, and the whole team. 5 stars across the board for you all as you truely deserve it! Thank you again for your patience and one-on-one experience that made me feel like I had been going to the store the past 10 years. I would strongly recommend Beach Ace Hardware for any of your needs you never know how much you need a helping hand from a team like this when dealing with such a frustrating situation. To make a long story short I...

It’s no secret that smaller hardware stores are disappearing left and right… likely unable to compete with the big box chains like Blowes and Home Despot. This makes me sad anyway, but today I’m extra disappointed that this is the way the world is heading. And here’s why.

I stopped at the dero fixit public bike pump this morning to top up the front tire on my mountain bike only to find that a piece of the valve connector was missing and so the pump was not only useless but had caused me to lose all the air in my tire due to it being a presta valve.

I walked my bike to Pedritos bike shop but it would be hours before he opened.

Well, a gentleman who was arriving for his shift at the Ace Hardware on the Beach two doors down noticed my predicament and offered to let me use a bike pump that he had behind the counter… not buy a pump, just let me air up. I’m afraid I didn’t catch his name. I apologized for not having any cash on me, even though he clearly wasn’t of that mindset. I bought a soda with debit instead, which was also unnecessary but it felt like the least I could do.

So, as I said before… I’m disappointed. Ace hardware on the beach has been in business in Lauderdale by the Sea as long as I can remember but one day, without fail, it will be gone, replaced by a high rise with an unfriendly valet… who I doubt will have a bike pump behind his stand for the occasional...

I have always been partial to small hardware stores over large box stores because, in my experience, they generally have better customer service, and I like to help small businesses.

But this time, I was wrong. And I got screwed.

I came to Beach Ace Hardware on Wednesday, October 5th to buy D batteries for my flashlight in anticipation of Hurricane Matthew. They were sold out, as were the previous 4 places I stopped. So, I decided to buy 2 LED Headlamps at $24 each because they take Triple A batteries. I also bought a pack of Triple A batteries. The total was $61.45.

Luckily, Hurricane Matthew missed us, so I did not open or use any of my purchases. I returned to Beach Ace Hardware 3 days later to return my items, receipt in-hand.

I was told, "No returns on Emergency Hurricane Items." There were some printed signs by the register. I'm not sure if those signs were up on the day that I purchased my items. If so, then I accept some responsibility. But I would not have made that purchase if I knew that I could not return the items if they were unused/unopened.

I just called Home Depot and Lowe's; BOTH are accepting all returns, regardless of whether or not they were "Hurricane...