Based out of Oak Brook, Illinois, the hardware cooperative was founded by Richard Hesse, E. Gunnard Lindquist, Frank Burke, and Oscar Fisher in Chicago, Illinois. Ace, "The Helpful Place", is now synonymous with neighborhood hardware stores. There are approximately 4,400 of Ace Hardware stores across the US.

Every year Ace Hardware kicks off the holiday season with incredible Black Friday discounts and sales. Ace is notorious for leaking the ads early to get consumers thinking about the sales.