• Business: Mazo Hardware & Rental
• Location: Mazomanie, Wisconsin
• Owner: Renee Zaman
• Years in business: 15

Renee Zaman

Renee Zaman never envisioned owning a hardware store. Her diverse career included roles as a waitress, factory worker, and long-time schoolteacher. However, in 2009, she and her husband, Amir, purchased Mazo Hardware and Rental in Mazomanie, Wisconsin. Despite having little knowledge of hardware or retail, Renee dove head-first into the business. To simplify operations, she chose Paladin Point of Sale.

“Our store has a small footprint, but we have sections filled floor to ceiling with products. We’ve tailor-made our store to have what our clients want. Paladin gave us a system that works really well. We’re confident that Paladin helps us know what’s selling and what isn’t.”

Mazo Hardware’s 6,500-square-foot space is strategically located on Highway 14, about 20 miles west of Madison, making it convenient for Dane County residents and beyond.

“We see about 10,000 cars pass by daily. People from Madison come here to shop. We go the extra mile to ensure we have what they need,” Renee adds.

Paladin wasn’t their first point-of-sale system. The initial system was overly complex and expensive, requiring significant technical knowledge. A second system couldn’t handle the store’s high volume of orders and sales. Like Goldilocks, Renee found Paladin to be just right.

“I’m not a computer nerd, so the other systems were kind of hard to work. Paladin is easy to use, so it’s good for me,” she explains.

Renee, left, and store manager Yvette Peterson have made Mazo Hardware and Rental into one of the best hardware stores in the greater Madison, Wisconsin area.

Paladin’s intuitive system benefits Renee and her team of nearly two dozen employees, including high school students and special needs workers.

“As a former educator, I enjoy nurturing young people. We hire them to help build their job skills. We make a great team,” Renee shares.

Mazo Hardware’s community involvement helped earn it a 2020 Beacon Award from The Hardware Connection. The store was also voted Best of Madison 2024 by its customers.

Renee says her store buys from True Value and United, now Do it Best, and uses over a dozen other suppliers for unique offerings. Paladin fully supports electronic data interchange (EDI) with all major suppliers and offers stores the ability to have multiple EDI suppliers. Paladin also has Suggested Order™ which simplifies her restocking process by providing suggested orders based on a store’s transaction history.

Mazon Hardware does a lot of business with Milwaukee Tool.

With around 28,000 SKUs and annual sales of about $1.7 million, Mazo Hardware thrives in a town of roughly 1,700 people. Seasonal products dominate their sales, with winter goods like snow shovels and sidewalk salt from December to April, and gardening supplies in the warmer months. The store also purchases nearly $200,000 worth of Milwaukee power tools annually, attracting a loyal customer base.

Renee credits Paladin for keeping their inventory fresh. They identify slow-moving items and hold annual tent sales called Go Loco with The Locals.

“Every year we go through our inventory using Paladin to figure out stuff that hasn’t sold for a while and put it in the tent sale,” Renee explains.

As the face of Mazo Hardware, Renee spends a lot of time at the store. She uses Paladin Pilot and Paladin Managed Services to monitor her business closely even when she’s not on-site. Paladin Pilot allows her to access the business network remotely, while Paladin Support and Managed Services ensure the store runs reliably and securely.

“I spend many hours here every week. I love Paladin Pilot because I can do payroll (from home),” she explains, adding that she feels more secure with Paladin’s technical help. “I appreciate the fact that they do the Windows updates for me. I have those services because I’m not an expert on that. I like knowing that someone who knows what they’re doing is looking after our system.

Renee also praises Alena Hoyer, her store’s dedicated support specialist.

“Alena is part of why we feel confident with Paladin. She speaks our language. I know how everything is set up, but when I was in high school, we didn’t have computers. It’s comforting to have knowledgeable people looking after us,” she concludes.