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Write store policies, procedures and documents with AI, then clean them up

who Eric Cooper, who co-runs Cooper's True Value Home Center in Taft, California, with his brother Jeff, in The Hardware Connection

What it does

Per The Hardware Connection (December 2025), the Coopers began using AI for internal tasks: policy writing, document cleanup and community outreach. The magazine's October 2025 'How's Business' page also reports that Eric Cooper applies AI to community projects and internal support, "particularly for writing policies, procedures, and store documents." They are watching how other hardware retailers use it for marketing and inventory analysis. The articles don't name the AI tool.

Tool cost

The articles don't name the tool; ChatGPT Free $0; Go $8/mo; Plus $20/mo; Pro $100/mo (our DIY build)

Setup

Easy · or we do it from $149/mo

Tools

AI tool (not named)

OperationsRetail

The problem

Policies, procedures and store documents for a family hardware store take time to write and keep tidy, and that time comes out of the hours spent with customers.

What happened

"We're just scratching the surface," Eric Cooper says. "But you can see how powerful it's going to be." The October page says it speeds communication and frees up time for customers. No figures were given. Self-reported.

Quoted in the source: Eric Cooper, Cooper's True Value Home Center. Source: The Hardware Connection: Yin and Yang of Running a Hardware Store (Doug Donaldson) (2025-12-08) · Added 2026-10-20.

How to set it up yourself

  1. What Cooper's True Value does: per The Hardware Connection, the owners use AI to write policies, procedures and store documents, clean up existing documents and help with community outreach. The articles don't name the tool, so the steps below are our DIY build with ChatGPT.
  2. Gather your notes for one policy or procedure (returns, special orders, opening and closing, key cutting) or paste in an old document that needs cleaning up.
  3. Paste it into ChatGPT with the prompt below and ask for a clear, numbered version your staff can follow.
  4. Read every line against how your store really works, fix anything that's wrong, and have the owner approve it before it's posted or handed to staff.

Copy-paste prompt

I co-own {STORE NAME}, a family hardware store in {TOWN}. Turn these notes into a clear {POLICY / PROCEDURE / STORE DOCUMENT} for staff: {NOTES OR OLD DOCUMENT}. Use short numbered steps, plain words and a one-line purpose at the top. Keep every rule I gave and don't add new ones; where something seems missing or unclear, write [ASK OWNER]. At the end, list any questions I should answer before this goes to staff.
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