Art Freedman

Art Freedman is an Ace Hardware store owner, business consultant, entrepreneur, author, and member of the Ace Center for Excellence, with over 45 years of experience in the retail business.

Freedman is always happy to take on a tough challenge and deliver excellent results. During his long and varied career, he has worked his way through nearly every position in both retail and corporate environments, from managing inventory at a single store to running a large home center to overseeing a chain of stores.
In 1988, Freedman decided to open his own hardware store. Since then he has bought and sold several stores and currently owns American River Hardware in Folsom, California. His wife, Geni, is the operator of the business, which gives Art the time to do what he loves to do -- help businesses improve their customer experience to improve their profitability.

Freedman now serves as Vice President of Project Development for a
23-store Ace Hardware chain in New York, and, in his spare time, he also serves as CEO of a successful Internet startup.

Freedman's mission is to provide companies with the strategies and tools they need to be successful, and the Ace Center for Excellence gives Freedman the platform to leverage his background and experience to teach other companies how to deliver an amazing customer experience based on Ace's award-winning approach. Affectionately known as the "guru of retail," he speaks on a variety of topics including Customer Service, Leadership, Business Finance, Margin Management, and Product Management, and educates, inspires and energizes owners so they can take their businesses to the next level. Freedman has worked with and delivered keynote speeches to business owners in every state in the United States and over 25 countries around the world.