Kimps Ace Hardware Case Study

Want to see the real ROI behind Kimps Ace’s website?

Kimps Ace team cutting a ribbon at a store opening

Since 1940, Kimps Ace Hardware has been a trusted part of the Ashwaubenon and Howard communities. As a family-owned business with deep local roots, Kimps had built decades of customer loyalty through knowledgeable service, strong community connections, and a welcoming in-store experience.

But their website no longer reflected the experience customers had when walking through the doors.

Kimps Ace partnered with Mountain Mojo Group to create a modern website that better showcased their departments, services, rentals, history, and culture while improving local search visibility and helping customers quickly find the information they needed online.

Summary

Bringing the Kimps Ace Experience Online

Working closely with the Kimps team, we built a stronger digital storefront using real in-store photography, team imagery, improved navigation, and locally-focused department and rental pages designed to better support customers searching online.

The result was a website built not just to look better, but to help more local customers discover Kimps Ace when searching for hardware products, departments, rentals, and store information online.

Within the first 90 days after launch, the new website generated:

customer checking out at Kimps Ace

67.2k

GOOGLE SEARCH IMPRESSIONS

556

GOOGLE SEARCH CLICKS

8.1k

Active Website Users

894

New Users from organic search

620

Contact Page Visits

5.5

Average Search Position

Details

Turning a Local Hardware Store Into a Stronger Digital Destination

Challenges

    • The previous website did not fully reflect the culture, history, and in-store experience Kimps is known for

    • Customers searching online for departments, rentals, and services had limited pathways to find information quickly

    • The site needed stronger local SEO foundations to improve discoverability in Google Search

    • Mobile usability and navigation needed improvement for customers searching on the go

    • Kimps wanted a website that felt authentic and community-driven rather than overly corporate or generic

    • The team needed a scalable digital foundation to support future visibility, traffic, and customer engagement

    Solution

    Our approach focused on combining authentic local storytelling with improved usability, mobile optimization, and stronger local SEO foundations to help more customers discover Kimps online.

    Working closely with the Kimps team, we incorporated real in-store photography, staff imagery, department visuals, and local brand elements that showcased the culture and history of the business rather than relying on generic stock imagery. The new website included improved department and rental pages, simplified navigation, a mobile-first design, and search-optimized content structure designed to support customers searching for products, services, rentals, directions, and store information online.

    From launch, the website was built to function as more than just a digital brochure. It became a stronger digital storefront designed to improve discoverability, support customer engagement, and create measurable local search visibility for Kimps Ace Hardware.

    Testimonial

    “Mountain Mojo Group is a concise, punctual, and easy-to-work-with team that built our website with a clean, organized approach, making the entire process seamless and the final product incredibly user-friendly. Thanks to Sydney, Rand, and the whole team.”

    Maddy Bowker
    Marketing Coordinator, Kimps Ace Hardware

    WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT & LOCAL SEO

    Building a Stronger Local Search Foundation

    The Kimps Ace website was built with a strong focus on local search visibility and customer usability. Rather than relying on a limited number of broad pages, the new site introduced dedicated department, rental, and service pages designed to better align with how local customers actually search online. This created stronger opportunities for Kimps Ace to appear in relevant local searches tied directly to products, departments, and customer needs while improving the overall browsing experience across the site.

    The website structure, navigation, and content organization were intentionally designed to support both search visibility and ease of use, helping customers quickly find store information, departments, rentals, and services from any device.

    Kimps Ace Website on desktop
    Flagstaff Mountain Arizona

    MOBILE-FIRST CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT

    Reaching Customers Where They Search

    Following the launch, one of the clearest trends was the importance of mobile search traffic and mobile usability. The majority of search visibility came from customers browsing on mobile devices, reinforcing how often local customers search for products, departments, directions, and store information while actively planning projects or shopping locally.

    Because of this, the website was designed with a mobile-first approach that prioritized streamlined navigation, fast access to key information, and a clean browsing experience across all screen sizes.

    Kimps Ace mobile website view

    WHAT MADE THIS WORK

    Built Around the Real Kimps Experience

    Kimps Ace’s website transformation succeeded because the project focused on more than just modernizing the look of the site. Every decision throughout the process was centered around creating a digital experience that genuinely reflected the personality, culture, and customer experience people associate with Kimps Ace.

    Authentic Local Storytelling

    By incorporating real in-store photography, staff imagery, and department visuals, the website captured the welcoming and community-focused atmosphere that makes Kimps unique.

    Mobile-First Customer Experience

    The website was designed to support how today’s customers actually browse and search online, with streamlined navigation and quick access to departments, rentals, contact information, and store details across all devices.

    Strong Local Search Foundation

    Dedicated department and service pages helped strengthen search visibility for relevant local searches, creating more opportunities for customers to discover Kimps Ace online while searching for products, rentals, and hardware solutions.

    With a stronger digital foundation now in place, Kimps Ace is positioned to continue building visibility, customer engagement, and long-term local search growth while delivering an online experience that feels just as helpful and welcoming as being inside a Kimps Ace store.

    Kimps Ace Hardware · Case Study

    How long does it take for a website to pay for itself?

    We track this the honest way: real Google Search Console traffic, paired with conservative, clearly labeled sales assumptions — not guaranteed results.

    Kimps Ace Hardware — the real numbers
    Site launched 3/8/26. Figures below cover 3/8/26–8/31/26 (~5.8 months), from Google Search Console.
    Website launch
    Mar 8, 2026
    Tracking window
    ~5.8 months
    176 days, through 8/31/26
    Google Search clicks
    8,846
    Website investment
    $12,950
    Of 8,846 total Google Search clicks, 6,283 were branded clicks (71.0%) and 2,563 were non-branded discovery clicks (29.0%).
    Conservative estimate
    3% of clicks convert · $30 average sale
    Estimated sales (5.8 mo) $7,961.40
    Estimated monthly sales $1,372.66
    Payback period ~9.4 months
    These are illustrative estimates built on assumed conversion rates and average transaction values. Google Search Console measures website traffic, not tracked in-store or online purchases. Actual results will vary.
    Run your own numbers
    Start with Kimps Ace Hardware's numbers below, then adjust the website investment, traffic, conversion rate, and average transaction value to see how the math changes for your business.
    $
    months
    %
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    Kimps is loaded at the moderate scenario: 5% conversion rate and $35 average transaction value. Try 3% and $30 for the conservative scenario.
    Estimated monthly sales
    $0
    Payback period
    0.0 mo
    Year 1 return after website cost
    $0
    12 months of estimated sales minus the website investment
    This calculator is for illustration only. It projects sales using assumed conversion rates and average transaction values rather than tracked transactions. Actual results depend on your market, traffic, product mix, and how customers use your website.

    Book a Free Hardware Marketing Strategy Call

    Grab a meeting with Rand, one of Mojo’s Founders!

    What can I expect from a call with Rand? Expect a relaxed, no-pressure chat. Rand will get the quick scoop on your business, ask a few smart questions about leads, your website, and your CRM/follow-up, then help spot what’s really holding growth back. You’ll leave with clear, practical next steps, whether you work together or not.

        
           
    Who's Rand?

    Who's Rand?

    Meet Rand, Founder of Mountain Mojo Group. He helps businesses grow through fractional CMO leadership, CRM integration, and digital marketing that actually moves the needle.

    Rand’s journey started in restaurants, then took a sharp turn into MTV production in 2003, leading to 1,400+ concerts, festivals, and fundraisers. He co-founded Flagstaff’s Green Room venue, operated major outdoor events at the Pepsi Amphitheater, and ran three festivals before two successful exits led him to launch Mountain Mojo with partner Austin Leggett in 2015. Off the clock, he’s big on service, mentoring, and – most importantly – family time.

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