Nine family-owned hardware businesses in Puerto Rico have joined to create FerreCoop, the first hardware-store cooperative on the island, formally constituted during a Constituent Assembly that brought together hardware stores with decades of history in different towns. Together, the founding members operate 18 locations across 16 municipalities, generate 341 direct jobs in their hardware operations and represent approximately $68 million in annual sales.
The members are Ferreterías La Quinta, Comercial Hermanos Barreto, Comercial Sabaneño y Lajeño, Comercial Rojas, Ferreterías Cosme, Comercial Alco, Ferretería Minillas & Toa Alta Hardware, Ferreterías Solí and Ferretería Agrícola Lozada. Under the cooperative model, the businesses will share a structure to develop commercial opportunities, increase their scale of operations and strengthen their competitiveness, while each company continues operating under its own name and keeping its direct relationship with customers.
FerreCoop president, attorney Arquelio Rivera Rodríguez, called the creation a historic moment for the hardware sector and the island’s cooperative movement, saying the founders want to gain scale without losing the closeness that distinguishes them. The companies span first, second and third generations, with seven already led by their second generation and the oldest operating since 1972. The stores also support schools, universities, sports leagues, churches and community organizations.