Being on my own recently, I was not familar with hardware purchases. On my last two visits at the…read moreSan Rafael location I was assisted by Thomas Sousa. Thomas spent as much time with me as I needed. He didn't make me feel rushed and answered all my questions with a smile and went out of his way to assist me with my needs. Great service and friendly staff. What a breath of fresh air to have customer service back!

I intentionally called my local Ace to shop local and support them…read more I had questions about purchasing a barbecue before Christmas but for delivery after the holiday. The man who answered the phone was very polite and asked me to hold while he found someone who could answer my questions. I overhead heard him tell a colleague the nature of my question and "do you want to speak to her?" to which I heard "Not really." I hung up. Guess I won't be taking my business there.

Amazing people and most friendliest in the county. Just wanted to thank you all for helping me…read morethrough years. BEST of Marin county.

I like to support local businesses but very often this Ace location doesn't have what I need or…read morepresents me with other bad shopping experiences like items ringing up for significantly more than the shelf tag or long waits to check out. I'll have an irritating experience so will avoid going there for a while, then there'll be something I need in the middle of a project and I'll decide to try again. Part of the problem is the store has limited stock and because of the small size, things are sometimes not easy to access or find- like up on the top of shelves so you need to get help to even see what they have. I will say they seem to have done re-organization and the layout seems a bit better- also the nursery has gotten better recently (plants look better and prices are easier to identify). Maybe just bad luck but today I needed a few spring planting items that I was pretty sure they carried. It turned out they were out of both of the products but I found substitutes that could work- especially since I didn't want to drive to Novato or downtown San Rafael. When I went to pay, after standing in a long line, I found the total came over $5 more than the shelf tags indicated and also they didn't accept the Ace Hardware gift certificate I planned to use towards my purchase so I cancelled the transaction. While I would love to shop locally, both for the convenience and to keep money in my community it's not worth the potential for frustration so will continue to go to Pini or the Chase locations for my hardware purchases

I went to Fairfax Lumber because I wanted to support a local business instead of going to Home…read moreDepot. After this experience, I won't be back. I had five keys made, and none of them worked. When I returned, Bob, the manager who made the keys, told me he could tell the original key was "a copy of a copy" and that he had doubts when he made them the first time. I did wonder at that point why the keys had been made in the first place if he had concerns they wouldn't work, or why I wasn't warned beforehand. However, he was friendly, seemed genuinely willing to help, and offered to try to fix them, so I gave him the benefit of the doubt. Unfortunately, the adjusted keys didn't work either. I went back a third time to return them for a refund. I had paid with a $50 Visa gift card, and Bob attempted to process the refund back to the card. He told me it went through. Later, when I tried to use the card for gas, it was declined because the funds had not been returned. Neither Bob nor I realized at the time that Visa gift cards cannot accept refunds. When I called about the missing refund, I spoke with Lexi. She was abrupt and rude throughout the conversation. She insisted the only option was a Fairfax Lumber store credit. I repeatedly explained that I had lived in Fairfax for six years and that this was my first time shopping there. I had specifically chosen Fairfax Lumber because I wanted to support a local business, but a store credit wasn't useful to me because I needed the money for actual expenses, not credit at a store I never use. I am on SSDI and live on a fixed income, so the difference between getting my money back and being stuck with store credit at a business I don't patronize actually matters. After going back and forth, during which she became increasingly condescending and told me things like, "Everyone knows you can't refund to a gift card," while listing other stores that supposedly follow the same policy, she finally agreed to refund me in cash. She added that they would "never do that for me again." The next day, I went to the store. Before I could speak with Lexi, Bob intercepted me and pulled me aside. He told me he had overheard how Lexi was speaking to me on the phone and didn't want me to have to deal with that. He asked me to come back when he wasn't busy and assured me he would personally take care of the situation. Unfortunately, I became very sick and couldn't return for about two weeks. I left a message during that time but never received a call back. Eventually, I called again, found out when Bob would be working, and returned to the store. On what was now my fifth trip regarding this issue, Bob said he couldn't remember all the details, which was understandable. However, instead of honoring what he had previously told me, he brought Lexi over. She immediately stated that Fairfax Lumber does not give cash refunds when a Visa gift card is used and that the only option was store credit. When I reminded her that she had already agreed to refund the money in cash, her response was, "I would never say that." At that point, Bob sided with her, saying, "Lexi knows more than I do. She's been here a long time." He then began getting an attitude and told me that this was simply how things were going to be handled. I responded that I knew exactly what I had been told and that if they weren't going to honor it, they should just give me the store credit and let me leave. The irony came at the very end. Lexi handed me a Fairfax Lumber gift card and then slid over an envelope containing extra change because, according to her, that portion couldn't be put on the card. Apparently, cash refunds are possible when it works for them. The way this entire situation was handled was unprofessional, rude, and, after five separate trips, a complete waste of my time. The issue was never just the amount of money. The issue was being sold keys that didn't work, being told one thing and then something completely different later, having an employee acknowledge that I had been treated poorly, promise to make it right, and then completely reverse course. When you're living on a fixed income, being forced into store credit you can't use isn't a minor inconvenience--it's real money. If anyone wants a Fairfax Lumber gift card with about $49 on it, let me know. I won't be setting foot in that store again.

Jesse and Michelle were super helpful and friendly in the garden department I'll be back for sure…read more Amazing customer service!

Our recent experience at the Jim Corbet's Ace Hardware in Larkspur was so exceptional that I had to…read morewrite a review. What began as a stressful situation -- a crucial screw falling out of my crutches, leaving me in a vulnerable and frustrating position -- quickly became a masterclass in what exemplary customer service looks like, thanks to Ace Hardware's staff member Ricardo. From the moment I walked in, Ricardo was kind, attentive, and completely unrushed. He took my situation seriously, listened carefully, and got straight to work finding a solution. He was patient and focused, methodically working through options until he found exactly the right fit. His resourcefulness was genuinely impressive -- this wasn't a simple fix, and yet he approached it as a seasoned problem-solver who takes real pride in his work. Most importantly, he succeeded. I walked out of that store on my crutches, fully functional and completely relieved, all because Ricardo refused to give up on what might have seemed like a small problem to some, but was a very big deal to me. This is the kind of employee who defines a store's reputation. Ricardo exemplifies everything you'd hope to find at a neighborhood hardware store -- expertise, warmth, and genuine care for the people he serves. My family and I will be coming to Jim Corbet's Ace Hardware exclusively from now on, and their stellar staff like Ricardo is the reason why.

New owners are not good with inventory, every time I go there they don't have what I need. Hope…read morethey improve.

Jacob (reddish bearded guy?) in the paint dept. needs to be promoted - or given a raise, or both…read more Today we brought a large piece of chipped paint that peeled from our house to get a match paint color. The first guy put the piece in the matching machine and made our paint. It was too dark. So then he tried again - this time it didn't match at all. His solution - "oh well - that the best we can do." I asked if the machine was broken - we've never had this problem before. The first guy just shrugged and said it wasn't gonna be perfect. It wasn't even close! He basically said - take it or leave it. So I asked for a manager - first guy just wasn't capable of problem solving. Jacob heard and came over, took a look, knew exactly how much white to add to the first can - and boom...perfect match. Home Depot - if you lose your "Jacob", you're stuck with "the first guy" who makes $100 worth of bad paint that will eventually end up on the discount shelf. And you also lose customers. Jacob needs to train, he needs to be promoted, he needs to be a decision maker. We're tired of the first guy. The "take it or leave it"guy. The shrugging guy. Please retrain him to be like Jacob. Please hire more Jacobs.

Just can't say how efficient and friendly the staff and customer service it here!…read more Today the young woman who helped with my return and got my propane was just a delight.

Today I went to Goodman's Back to School Fair. It was a FREE fair put on my the employees of the…read morestore with a bouncy house, majician, face painting, games with prizes petting zoo and balloon twister. They also gave away free snow cones, and per the norm, free popcorn. We were there for close to 2 hours, and still I had to pull my kids away when it was time to leave. All I can say it THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU to whomever at Goodman's does all the hard work to put this on, and whomever approves the check to pay for it. The community of parents and their kids who enjoyed it today are very, very grateful.

I'm all for shopping at smaller independent hardware stores and trying to stay away from the big…read morecorporate stores but when you need something and you take the time to go to a store and they have such a small selection that you can't find what you're looking for and you end up having to leave and go drive to the big box store to find what you need. You see why the smaller ones are slowly dying. I'm done going to the store because I could never find what I need. I just don't have it. They do have a incredible amount of staff for a store of its size, but they are not much help if the product is not in house.

This review has been way overdue. I just finished a plumbing project for my mom, and I thought that…read morethis was the best time to visit Yelp. My family has been been doing business Ace/Pini hardware ever since it was on Grant Avenue, Novato . The customer service has never changed since I was in my teens and now in my 60s. The staff is extremely knowledgeable and helpful on DIY projects. When entering, I'm always, ALWAYS greeted by an associate and asked if there's something he/she can help me do, explain and or find. It's my humble opinion that this is one of the best Customer service examples in the industry. Thank you, Pini Hardware!!!

Always helpful. Always knowledgeable. Easy place to shop. They have almost everything.read more

I called in earlier and honestly, this was the best customer service I had from Harbor freight…read moretools! Levi answered and did a stocked check for me an item I need. Answered all my questions, didn't rush me, honestly I can tell this location values and treats their customers very well. I would definitely recommend this place to my friends and family ! Thank you for having such a great team .

Yes, I still hate shopping for tools. But after spending a LOT of time in the past 2 years at Home…read moreDepot, Lowe's and Builder's Supply, Harbor Freight definitely has the best values. Builder's Supply has the best customer service, but Harbor Freight is second. Let's not even discuss HD or Lowe's because they don't have customer service at all. I'm typically ready for a nap after a trip to Harbor Freight (tool shopping is exhausting) but I'm not mad. That's a good thing.