Mazzone Ace Hardware — Local services in New York

UPDATED REVIEW

They went above and beyond to fix my paint issue. After reaching out to me and exchanging emails, I was unable to come by the store during typical hours today because I had some appointments downtown. They reached out to me after close and Luis, their Assistant Manager, offered to come to my apartment down the street to scan the tile that I was attempting to match with their handheld device.

He then went back and mixed me new paint and did an exchange, all after hours, to get me the paint that matched. Bagged up some snacks for my dog on the way out, as well.

Genuinely above and beyond service and care to fix an issue. I now know, and I hope this review helps others to know that they typically do no return or exchange mixed paint. That said, I appreciate the extreme care and empathy they showed and will definitely again be frequenting this neighborhood store.

PREVIOUS REVIEW

Been here 2-5 times a week since I moved in down the street despite their prices and selection not always being the best and having to leave to go elsewhere. Don’t see myself going back after today.

Went in to buy paint, only needed a small amount but the smallest they sell is a quart, no sample sizes. Picked out a color and when they went to make it they said they were out of the type I requested and I’d have to go with one that’s $10 more expensive. They honored my $5 coupon that they otherwise wouldn’t have, but still…$30 for a quart was more than I wanted to pay, which I explicitly told them. But, I gave in to the more expensive paint they offered despite vocalizing that I was very hesitant.

They mixed it and sold it to me without doing a drop test on top to see if I liked the color. I thought nothing of it. Bought, went home, and did so myself. It didn’t match my item and was way brighter than the sample card. Went back 10 minutes later to return and they said no returns on mixed paints. I’ve never seen a paint supplier not take unused paint for returns. How on earth would they not tell that to a customer who was hesitant about a purchase, one who during the transaction said the paint wasn’t for a wall but for furniture.

I now have $30 of unusable paint and am going to have to find a new hardware store.

The very friendly staff is the only reason I am giving 2...

If I’m going to the hardware store it’s for 1 of 2 reasons: I’m feeling creative and want to tackle a project, or I have a problem that needs to be solved. In both states of mind I need help, and they’re ready to give it with sincere empathy and expertise.

It’s clear that the employees seem to enjoy working there, enjoy each other, and love helping customers. They listen as I convolutedly explain whatever I’m trying to do (a wing nut I can’t unscrew, a mirror frame I need the right kind of paint for, etc) and they work with me until we’ve found a solution. They even stop me from over-spending if they think that product won’t solve the problem.

The best customer service experience I have ever had was here. I am seriously terrified of cockroaches, and when I started seeing them in my apartment I went here to buy some bug spray so I was armed for any more encounters. I was distraught and exhausted after a few days of dealing with it and as they were walking me through the spray options, I made a quick joke about the irony of putting pictures of cockroaches on the bottle since, if you’re buying the spray, it’s because you hate seeing bugs. As I shopped around for other things one of the employees took a can to the register and covered all the cockroach images with sale stickers so I wouldn’t have to see any cockroaches again!

They caught me in a pretty rough moment and went above and beyond to help. That little act of kindness certainly went further than they know. The people here absolutely rock. If you live in the area and need a hardware store it’s...

I've been shopping here for 10 years, living nearby - they've always been my first stop for anything hardware/home related. Three years ago, they were definitely 5 star - helpful, well stocked, decent prices. However, that all changed recently as their focus switched to developing the rest of the block they own. The hardware store was drastically shuffled around - there's basically no sense to where anything is now, and even the staff seems to have a hard time knowing what they have and where to find it. It's also much more difficult to get their attention, and to get the item you need. What would have been a quick 5 minute stop with certainty you would walk out with what you needed has now turned into a frustrating half-hour search among disorder and not-as-helpful staff, with a good chance you'll walk out empty handed. Though I really do hope they'll recover and regain their focus on hardware - Brooklyn Hardware on 5th Avenue is often just a better first stop, or the R&A across from Key Food.

Update 7/2013: The store is now even smaller, and less organized than before - it's a hodgepodge of whatever they've saved as the space shrinks. It seems fairly clear that they're now focused on development their increasingly valuable real estate space (and more power to them for it) - but the hardware store is now just...