The Grit Blueprint Podcast
How Independent Dealers Can Compete (and Win) Against Big Box Giants, Dan Starr, Do it Best CEO
April 22, 2025 Length: 31 min Watch on YouTube (opens in a new tab)
On The Grit Blueprint Podcast, recorded live at the Do it Best Spring Market, Stefanie Couch sits down with Do it Best Group CEO Dan Starr to talk about how independent dealers can compete and win against big-box retailers. They unpack the True Value acquisition and how independents can leverage co-op scale.
About This Episode.
The biggest co-op in the hardware industry just made a major move, and it’s shaking up the entire game for independent retailers.
In this episode of The Grit Blueprint Podcast, Stefanie Couch sits down with Dan Starr, CEO of Do it Best Group, live at their Spring Market, to unpack the acquisition of True Value, how independent hardware stores and lumberyards can leverage co-op scale, and why branding, tech, and specialization are the keys to thriving in 2025.
If you’re an independent dealer, lumberyard owner, or manufacturer, this is the episode you didn’t know you needed.
We talk
- How Do it Best is helping independents compete with big-box retailers
- What the True Value acquisition means for dealers
- Why branding and AI are game-changers for legacy businesses
- Real strategies for growth, inventory management, and tech adoption
- How to protect your margins while staying small and local
Key Takeaways.
- Do it Best Group, the biggest co-op in the hardware industry, acquired True Value, and Dan explains what that means for dealers.
- Independent hardware stores and lumberyards can leverage co-op scale to compete with big-box retailers.
- Branding, technology, and specialization are the keys to thriving in 2025.
- The conversation covers real strategies for growth, inventory management, and technology adoption.
- Independents can protect their margins while staying small and local.
Questions and Answers.
How is Do it Best helping independent dealers compete?
Do it Best Group CEO Dan Starr explains how independent hardware stores and lumberyards can leverage co-op scale to compete with big-box retailers. He also unpacks what the True Value acquisition means for dealers.
What are the keys to thriving as an independent dealer?
The conversation names branding, technology, and specialization as the keys to thriving in 2025. It also covers how to protect your margins while staying small and local.
Who is the CEO of Do it Best Group?
Dan Starr is the CEO of Do it Best Group, the biggest co-op in the hardware industry.
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