Ruth DeNault and her late husband Jim made sure their children got involved in the family business by starting them off early.
“They took us to the hardware store straight from the hospital, before we ever went home,” said Tom DeNault, the youngest of four sons running DeNault’s True Value Hardware in Rancho Santa Margarita. “We were truly raised in the hardware store.”
Ruth DeNault laughed off her son’s comments, saying, “Everyone wanted to see the babies.”
But the company she founded with Jim in 1956 was definitely a family affair and continues as such 58 years later. Tom and his three brothers—Bob, Steve and Don—have helped expand the San Clemente flagship store to four additional locations in nearby cities and develop a commercial division that provides maintenance supplies to apartment complexes throughout Southern California.
The Business Journal recognized DeNault’s True Value for its longevity at the 15th annual Family Owned Business Awards on Nov. 19 at the Hotel Irvine (see related stories, pages 1, 5, 6 and 10).
Ruth DeNault, 83, accepted the award, escorted by her sons. She is still actively involved in the day-to-day business and takes care of the bookkeeping, housewares and gift buying. Bob, the eldest son, runs the San Clemente store and oversees inventory and the company’s real estate division, DeNault Properties LLP.
Steve handles the administrative part of the business, including human resources. Don, third in line, is in charge of the San Juan Capistrano store, and Tom oversees DeNault Commercial Supply, which he started in 1998. It now has the Irvine Company, Western National Property Management and William Lyon Homes on its roster of clients.
Strong Years
The past couple of years have been strong for the company, with most of the growth in the commercial division.
“And the sky is the limit, because there are so many apartment complexes,” Tom DeNault said. “It’s an easy area to grow.”
DeNault’s True Value employs about 150 people “from all walks of life.”
“We end up with a lot of retired people that come to work because they’ve always wanted to work in a hardware store, not because they needed the job, everything from sheriffs working part time, retired priests, airline pilots,” Steve DeNault said. “Most of them owned a home and enjoy working with people.”
Love for retail also runs in Ruth DeNault’s family—her parents owned a general store, and her grandparents ran a hardware store in New Leipzig, N.D. She, like her sons, helped out growing up.
Beginnings
Ruth met her husband at what is now the University of Jamestown in North Dakota. They decided to settle in San Clemente after a visit to his parents.
The couple bought Builder’s Hardware and Paint Supply and ran it as San Clemente Hardware Company until 1964.
“When we started, there were three hardware stores and two lumberyards in San Clemente, population 3,500,” Ruth DeNault said. “There were no big competitors until later on; it was all independents. Medium-sized home centers [such as Builders Emporium and Home Base] came in later, and when Lowe’s and Home Depot came in, they were all gobbled up.”
Staying Competitive
DeNault’s True Value did several things to remain competitive.
It joined True Value Co. in Chicago several decades ago to increase its purchasing power. The national buying co-op enables independent member stores to purchase large quantities of merchandise together to get better prices.
“Because we are owners, in essence, we get it for what they paid for,” Steve DeNault added.
DeNault’s True Value’s second advantage is its real estate—the family owns most its retail locations.
“That gives us stability, and it’s been a financial advantage because we’ve been able to buy property through the years, and it’s appreciated,” Ruth DeNault said. “We can control our rent; we are not subject to landlords.”
The family is also part of the community—and that makes a big difference, she said.
“As the boys grew up, and they were in sports and activities, we were part of that. In all the cities we were in, we sponsor the little league teams, schools, the YMCA, Boys and Girls Club.”
And then there is customer service, a frequent topic around the supper table at the DeNault household.
Steve DeNault said he remembers his father “tell us stories about what happened at the store, how to take care of a customer, so you kind of get indoctrinated with all these different things.”
