Long Island Hardware
Success StoryLong Island Hardware Trusts Paladin to Manage Vast B2B Clientele
Long Island Hardware is not your typical independent hardware store. Most such hardware stores normally rely on DIY homeowners and small, independent building contractors as their lifeblood. Long Island Hardware, located smack dab in the middle of Long Island, does things a little differently. While they get their share of homeowners and contractors, they sell mostly to surrounding businesses including a variety of manufacturing companies, major hotel chains, educational institutions such as St. John’s University and St. Joseph’s College, and local businesses of all sizes. The business uses Paladin Data Corporation’s retail management system to run its multifaceted business.
George Uribe, who has been involved in the business since 1986, says the company’s difficult experience with previous technology providers convinced him to go with Paladin.
Paladin provides independent retail hardware, lumber and building materials businesses an innovative management system that focuses on inventory control but adds a host of other features and applications that help stores manage all aspects of a business. Long Island Hardware utilizes Paladin to simplify its ordering processes. George says his department managers utilize mobile tablets to spot-check inventory and prepare EDI orders. He likes the flexibility Paladin provides the business.
“It’s nice Paladin has the ability to be flexible with how we use it. With our old system, you had to conform to it in order to use it,” he says.
George also likes Paladin’s ability to provide him with the specific information he needs to run the business. They utilize Paladin’s integration with QuickBooks to handle accounting and use its many other reports to simplify their work.
“It’s been over 10 years since we chose Paladin and it was still one of the best decisions we have made. Even with all the changes with COVID we are all dealing with, they are still providing excellent customer service.”
“We use the Items Sold report quite a bit. We’re part of the local LED rebate program and we run the reports to submit to the local utility provider for rebates,” he explains. “It’s one of those things you don’t even have to think about and that’s nice.”
Another one of Paladin’s many integrations Long Island Hardware uses is Pointy from Google. The service taps directly into Paladin’s sales information and inventory database to post the store’s products on local Google searches.
Long Island Hardware also utilizes Paladin’s Managed Services to protect it from online intrusion and fraud. Paladin’s DataWise™ provides hourly backups of its point-of-sale database and its Managed Network™ monitors and manages its business network to improve performance, reliability and security. Paladin’s Managed Network blocks more than 3 million security threats annually for its client’s stores.
Above all, though, George says Long Island Hardware appreciates how Paladin works hard to keep the business operating as efficiently as possible.
“As we’ve grown, Paladin has taken on more responsibility with us and it’s worked out well for us,” he says.
