About Us
Richard P. Hillman, President
Max W. Hillman, CEO
Established in 1964, The Hillman Group has enjoyed over four decades serving the hardware/home improvement industry. Our company is widely known for the outstanding service and quality products that we provide. While we have grown as a global distributor, the company maintains its “neighborhood” feel by becoming partners with our customers, helping to further their successes. Max Hillman Jr. and Richard Hillman, who both helped to start the company, remain as leaders in our everyday operations.
While Hillman was founded as a fastener company, we have branched out into a diverse entity, serving the consumers’ everyday needs with common products for commercial and residential uses, as well as, offering service and merchandising aids. Hillman’s customer portfolio, over 21,000 strong, includes Ace Hardware, True Value, Lowe’s, Home Depot, Tractor Supply, Walmart, Menards, Do it Best Corp., and many more.
Our Mission
We believe the future measure of our success will be the ability to respond rapidly to ever-changing customer requirements. This will require us to blend the best of big and small, becoming large and efficient internally while remaining small and flexible in the eyes of the customer. At Hillman, we are dedicated to this vision of the future.
Sales & Service
As a company, service is the hallmark of The Hillman Group. The Company employs the largest factory direct sales force in today’s industry. In total, the Sales/Service Organization consists of over 700 people including sales personnel, field representatives, and managers. The depth of the sales and service team enables Hillman to maintain consistent call cycles, ensuring that all of their customers will experience proper stock levels and inventory turns. This team can also build specific planograms to fit the needs of any store, as well as customizing programs that will meet consumers’ requirements for pricing, invoicing, and computer needs. This unique group also benefits from daily internal support from the inside sales and customer service teams.
Product Selection
The Hillman Group is the leader in today’s market in Fasteners, Keys, Letters, Numbers, Signs (LNS), and Engraving. Hillman is also the industry leader with the ability to market, package, and sell 40,000 SKU’s.
Fasteners still remain the core of Hillman’s business with the product line encompassing standard and specialty nuts, bolts, washers, screws, anchors, picture hanging items, and more.
The Keys and Letters, Numbers and Signs lines offer a full complement of product for home and commercial use. Hillman’s Engraving programs allow customers to create affordable, custom engraved ID tags in minutes. Tags come in a variety of materials, finishes and shapes including a licensed sports line.
Markets and Customers
Hillman sells its products to national accounts such as Walmart, HomeDepot, Lowe’s, Sears, Tractor Supply, PetSmart, Grainger, Menards and PETCO. Hillman’s status as a national supplier of unique, proprietary products to Big Box retailers allows them to maintain a strong market position within its product categories.
Hillman services approximately 15,000 franchise and independent ("F & I") retail outlets. These individual dealers are typically members of larger cooperatives, such as True Value, Ace Hardware and Do it Best Corp. The Company sells directly to the cooperative’s retail locations and also supplies many fastener items to the cooperative’s central warehouses. These central warehouses distribute to their members that do not have a requirement for Hillman’s in-store service. These arrangements reduce risk, credit and logistic expense for Hillman and reduce central warehouse inventory and delivery costs for the cooperatives.
Innovation
Whether in Distribution, Key Duplication, or Sales and Service, The Hillman Group is known for their innovation. Many of Hillman’s distribution centers employ the very latest in Warehouse Management Systems software, allowing paperless order picking. Technology used to engineer our Axxess Key Duplication System has revolutionized the metal key duplication process, giving consumers a virtually foolproof system. Our Sales and Service teams are equipped with the best technology for taking, tracking, and transporting customer orders.
Operations
Hillman’s operational infrastructure consists of 11 distribution/manufacturing facilities located throughout the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. These facilities combined can accommodate over 5,000 orders and 225,000 lines per day. Hillman has a 24-hour process time from order receipt to product shipment with a 97% fill rate.
Employment
Hillman employs over 1,700 individuals across the nation. We have a solid group of professionals whose dedication and teamwork form the backbone of our company. Hillman continually strives to hire associates that meet our standards for interpersonal skills and strong work ethic. | 