Despite dips in home prices, the construction sector still represents a massive portion of U.S. GDP. According to the latest Census Bureau data, valuation of the residential construction sector has seen an 11 percent increase from August of 2016 to August of 2017.

That means a lot more money filtering into the numerous hardware stores across the Valley.

The problem for small businesses, however, is grabbing a share of that market whose big-box competitors have seen significant growth and stock performance.

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