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Recovery Hardware: A Nuts and Bolts Story About Building a Business, Restoring a Community, and Renovating Lives
Determined to bring her neglected neighborhood back to life, Gina Schaefer opened her first hardware store near Whitman-Walker's Addiction Services program. What began as an effort to help her community recover evolved into a safe space for countless people in recovery to rebuild their lives.
Recovery Hardware shares A Few Cool Hardware Stores CEO Gina Schaefer's path to building a business that revitalized her neglected urban community and provided opportunities for everyone to thrive, no matter their past.
You'll discover:
Lessons from resilient employees who struggled with substance abuse.
Surprising skills from unconventional backgrounds that you won't find on a résumé.
How to put bravery into the backbone of your business.
Humorous insights into retail ownership, like how to choose the right store dog.
Workforce solutions to remove obstacles for people in recovery.
Second chances transform communities and change lives-and it starts with one store at a time. Read Recovery Hardware and start building a better business where growth gives back.
Recovery Hardware shares A Few Cool Hardware Stores CEO Gina Schaefer's path to building a business that revitalized her neglected urban community and provided opportunities for everyone to thrive, no matter their past.
You'll discover:
Lessons from resilient employees who struggled with substance abuse.
Surprising skills from unconventional backgrounds that you won't find on a résumé.
How to put bravery into the backbone of your business.
Humorous insights into retail ownership, like how to choose the right store dog.
Workforce solutions to remove obstacles for people in recovery.
Second chances transform communities and change lives-and it starts with one store at a time. Read Recovery Hardware and start building a better business where growth gives back.
220 pages, Hardcover
Published September 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
September 17, 2022
If you’re looking for practical tips on how to run a business, there are lots of those on the market. Gina Schaefer’s story is something altogether different and wonderful: a collection of stories about the amazing and imperfect people she met along the way, and how maybe the most bad-ass thing a business leader can do is have a little hope. This is ostensibly about a business, but it’s really about humanity. Also, she’s a hell of a writer, which helps.
September 16, 2022
50% memoir, 50% business advice and 100% charming. Gina Schaefer pulls back the curtain on two decades as a female leader in the hardware industry, and more importantly, as a compassionate capitalist in a diverse city filled with remarkable people who deserve a sense community.
May 26, 2023
Most people who go into business have no idea what kind of experience it will turn out to be. For Gina Schaefer, it was the experience of a lifetime. In her book, “Recovery Hardware: A Nuts and Bolts Story About Building a Business, Restoring a Community, and Renovating Lives,” her experience owning a hardware store turned into one that transformed her life and those of others. This memoir shares her battle as a woman trying to find her footing (and respect) in a field dominated by men. It also shares how she managed to change the lives of so many people who were in recovery from drug and/or alcohol addiction simply by hiring them – thus the title, “Recovery Hardware.”
Hardware stores are filled with tools to fix things. In Gina’s case, her store fixed lives, too. She is told, “No other employer would do all this.” “All this” is going above and beyond to help her employees – even by taking in the bearded dragon of one so the employee could go into rehab! She allows one of her employees to work a side job cleaning her house, another to live with her and her husband for a short time, and she makes workplace accommodations for one employee whose health deteriorated later in his time of employment at the store. The fact that she cut this person’s hours so drastically and even allowed his nurse a daily visit at her store really says a lot about just how much she truly cared about them.
Reading about her experience trying to get her application and loan requests approved for her business was irritating—mainly because she shared that her husband was REQUIRED to put his name down with her, be present at meetings for these things, and how they asked HIM questions instead of her. I did appreciate how she tried to make light of the situation with other people, joking that the bank would take her dog if the business failed, but it really boiled my blood that she had to endure that kind of sexism to get her business started up. She tried to make it clear that her husband would have nothing to do with her business, but they wouldn’t listen. They asked him questions he didn’t have answers to, acting like she was too dim-witted to understand the mechanics of having and running a business.
While Gina started out as the sole owner/manager, her husband eventually joined her as a partner. He was spending more time working with her at the hardware store than at his regular job, and when it got to be too much for him, he chose the hardware store. He was already on the paperwork, so it seemed to be a natural transition. In that event, they really turned it into a true “Mom and Pop” store and the press loved it.
I am so glad the author wrote this book and that these employees’ stories have been shared. There are so many stories here that I really enjoyed reading. My favorite chapter was “There’s a Dragon in My Living Room.” I also shared the really cute section titled “Life Lessons from a Dragon” with my oldest; we both enjoyed reading it. In fact, there are many sections of this book I enjoyed, such as “Rules for Choosing a Store Dog,” “Rules for Retail Expansion for Landlocked Sea Captains” and “The Recovery Hardware Playlist.”
“Recovery Hardware: A Nuts and Bolts Story About Building a Business, Restoring a Community, and Renovating Lives” by Gina Schaefer is a great book. It is not only about one woman’s experience in owning a hardware store, but lessons learned for business as well as for life. You don’t need to be a business owner or a business-minded person to enjoy this book; it is written for all kinds of readers. While this book is about the employees’ stories, it’s also about communities and people. The teams who show up every day and go the extra mile to make it all work. Plus the communities of people who patronize the business.
It’s very rare to find the right person you need when struggling through recovery. The employees who found Gina to be not only their boss but also their friend, mentor, sponsor, and supporter ended up the better for it. Their recovery from addiction was just a little bit easier with Gina at the helm to steer them along the way and give them the tools they needed to fix not only their addictions but their lives as well.
Hardware stores are filled with tools to fix things. In Gina’s case, her store fixed lives, too. She is told, “No other employer would do all this.” “All this” is going above and beyond to help her employees – even by taking in the bearded dragon of one so the employee could go into rehab! She allows one of her employees to work a side job cleaning her house, another to live with her and her husband for a short time, and she makes workplace accommodations for one employee whose health deteriorated later in his time of employment at the store. The fact that she cut this person’s hours so drastically and even allowed his nurse a daily visit at her store really says a lot about just how much she truly cared about them.
Reading about her experience trying to get her application and loan requests approved for her business was irritating—mainly because she shared that her husband was REQUIRED to put his name down with her, be present at meetings for these things, and how they asked HIM questions instead of her. I did appreciate how she tried to make light of the situation with other people, joking that the bank would take her dog if the business failed, but it really boiled my blood that she had to endure that kind of sexism to get her business started up. She tried to make it clear that her husband would have nothing to do with her business, but they wouldn’t listen. They asked him questions he didn’t have answers to, acting like she was too dim-witted to understand the mechanics of having and running a business.
While Gina started out as the sole owner/manager, her husband eventually joined her as a partner. He was spending more time working with her at the hardware store than at his regular job, and when it got to be too much for him, he chose the hardware store. He was already on the paperwork, so it seemed to be a natural transition. In that event, they really turned it into a true “Mom and Pop” store and the press loved it.
I am so glad the author wrote this book and that these employees’ stories have been shared. There are so many stories here that I really enjoyed reading. My favorite chapter was “There’s a Dragon in My Living Room.” I also shared the really cute section titled “Life Lessons from a Dragon” with my oldest; we both enjoyed reading it. In fact, there are many sections of this book I enjoyed, such as “Rules for Choosing a Store Dog,” “Rules for Retail Expansion for Landlocked Sea Captains” and “The Recovery Hardware Playlist.”
“Recovery Hardware: A Nuts and Bolts Story About Building a Business, Restoring a Community, and Renovating Lives” by Gina Schaefer is a great book. It is not only about one woman’s experience in owning a hardware store, but lessons learned for business as well as for life. You don’t need to be a business owner or a business-minded person to enjoy this book; it is written for all kinds of readers. While this book is about the employees’ stories, it’s also about communities and people. The teams who show up every day and go the extra mile to make it all work. Plus the communities of people who patronize the business.
It’s very rare to find the right person you need when struggling through recovery. The employees who found Gina to be not only their boss but also their friend, mentor, sponsor, and supporter ended up the better for it. Their recovery from addiction was just a little bit easier with Gina at the helm to steer them along the way and give them the tools they needed to fix not only their addictions but their lives as well.
September 19, 2022
I love this book for so many reasons, and am so grateful to Gina for writing her story, and to her publisher for releasing it during #RecoveryAwarenessMonth 2022.
Just some of the many reasons why I love this book:
A. As an avid reader, this is an enjoyable, smart, quick read with memorable characters and an interesting formatting style (with pop out islands like a Helpful Hub).
B. As another woman in a male-dominated field, I loved reading about Gina being a shameless self-promoter whose perseverance and self-reliance allowed her to succeed - and thrive.
C. As a 12-stepper with many friends in recovery, I was grateful to read Gina's story as she learned about the disease of addiction and the miracle of recovery in her stories of her hardware family, and of course "meeting" the individual people through their employment at the Recovery Hardware stores.
D. As a small business owner, I could relate to Gina's joys and heartaches, innovation and respect for the status quo, and above all, belief in her team.
E. As a strong believer in giving back to the community, I loved learning about the Pride Parade at Logan Circle, her stores' Ladies Night origins, supporting other locally-owned small businesses, and of course, giving people a chance - and sometimes a second chance.
F. As an animal lover, I adored the tails, tales, and lessons in Gabe, Buckley, Malu and Jay - and Ben, Dapper and Decker!
G. As an Ace Hardware store owner, I already was so appreciative of all that Gina has done for the good & the growth of our Ace cooperative. It was heartwarming to read about her journey onto the Ace Board and I'm so grateful for her leadership as a mentor and friend for other Ace store members - especially her growing the Women of Ace into a Grand-Ballroom sized bi-annual event (inside note: Gina was one of the speakers at the Women of Ace luncheon at the Ace Show in Chicago in August 2022)
OK enough reading my fangirling - now start reading Gina's story by visiting your favorite indie bookstore for your copy!
Just some of the many reasons why I love this book:
A. As an avid reader, this is an enjoyable, smart, quick read with memorable characters and an interesting formatting style (with pop out islands like a Helpful Hub).
B. As another woman in a male-dominated field, I loved reading about Gina being a shameless self-promoter whose perseverance and self-reliance allowed her to succeed - and thrive.
C. As a 12-stepper with many friends in recovery, I was grateful to read Gina's story as she learned about the disease of addiction and the miracle of recovery in her stories of her hardware family, and of course "meeting" the individual people through their employment at the Recovery Hardware stores.
D. As a small business owner, I could relate to Gina's joys and heartaches, innovation and respect for the status quo, and above all, belief in her team.
E. As a strong believer in giving back to the community, I loved learning about the Pride Parade at Logan Circle, her stores' Ladies Night origins, supporting other locally-owned small businesses, and of course, giving people a chance - and sometimes a second chance.
F. As an animal lover, I adored the tails, tales, and lessons in Gabe, Buckley, Malu and Jay - and Ben, Dapper and Decker!
G. As an Ace Hardware store owner, I already was so appreciative of all that Gina has done for the good & the growth of our Ace cooperative. It was heartwarming to read about her journey onto the Ace Board and I'm so grateful for her leadership as a mentor and friend for other Ace store members - especially her growing the Women of Ace into a Grand-Ballroom sized bi-annual event (inside note: Gina was one of the speakers at the Women of Ace luncheon at the Ace Show in Chicago in August 2022)
OK enough reading my fangirling - now start reading Gina's story by visiting your favorite indie bookstore for your copy!
October 6, 2022
A fantastic read for anyone passionate about local retail, or about leaving their community and the people around them better than they've found them. Gina's book captures the joy - and some of the challenges - in building a business that does well by its customers, community, and employees.
September 22, 2022
Heartwarming, inspirational, and funny. Recovery Hardware tells the story of a small business owner and how she gave some returning citizens and people in recovery a way to believe in themselves and together they revitalized their local community and built up her business. A rising tide does indeed lift all boats and you get to see how it happened with a woman-owned business in a male-dominated industry in Washington DC in this book!
December 10, 2023
An amazing true story told by an equally amazing woman. Loved reading about all she accomplished, but was particularly touched by her generosity of spirit, openness, and intelligence. She sets a standard for anyone who wants her life to turn in a new direction, but wonders if she has the courage to do so. Standing ovation for Gina Schaefer!
September 22, 2022
Beautiful and poetic is not how I’d expect to describe a book about hardware stores and people in recovery but Recovery Hardware defies expectations. It is beautifully written in addition to being funny, inspirational, and thought-provoking. A must-read for any small-business owner.
July 16, 2023
I met Gina at the May 2023 Gaithersburg Book Festival. Her book is as gregarious, warm and revealing as she is.
July 16, 2023
What a great story of local entrepreneurship, community, forming teams and helping people.
May 3, 2023
Recovery Hardware: A Nuts and Bolts Story About Building a Business, Restoring a Community, and Renovating Lives
A funny, yet heart-warming book about a business that has transformed lives, one piece of hardware at a time, while elevating the spirit of people
overcoming felonies, drugs and alcohol addictions.
Recovery Hardware exemplifies how a workplace can help nourish hidden business skills that most employees do not know they possess. A people-oriented employer suddenly becomes a nurturing surrogate family member. As a result, employees become self-confident human-beings who begin valuing life's "in-between" moments.
A funny, yet heart-warming book about a business that has transformed lives, one piece of hardware at a time, while elevating the spirit of people
overcoming felonies, drugs and alcohol addictions.
Recovery Hardware exemplifies how a workplace can help nourish hidden business skills that most employees do not know they possess. A people-oriented employer suddenly becomes a nurturing surrogate family member. As a result, employees become self-confident human-beings who begin valuing life's "in-between" moments.
March 21, 2026
There were more clichés in this book than actual content. She drifted around in her stories and they didn't always make the point. The virtue signaling was more than I could bear. I had to stop reading it before the end because I couldn't take it anymore.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews