Ace Identity Standards
Marks & Registration
Ace Hardware Corp. has acquired ownership and the right to exclusively use many trademarks and service marks. All members of the Ace team – retailers, employees and vendors – play an important role in preserving and enhancing Ace’s trademarks and service marks. For this reason, it’s important to thoroughly understand how they are to be used.
A trademark™ is a word (or several words), a name, a symbol (such as a design or special logo) or any combination of these, used to identify the private label goods distributed by our company. A service markSM is for services instead of goods or products. Some well-known trademarks and service marks are Ace, Ace Hardware, The Helpful Hardware Folks and Ace Rental Place. 
The mere use of a mark to identify and distinguish the goods and services of our company from those of others creates trademark rights. However, to obtain additional protection, Ace Hardware, like many other companies, registers many of its marks with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Trademarks must be protected and cared for, or their value can be lost. Our company’s trademarks are valuable assets and signify to purchasers that they are buying quality products distributed by a company with a reputation for dependability and integrity. By following the guidelines listed here in all of your company identification, correspondence, advertising, displays and other printed materials, you will be treating our trademarks with the care appropriate to their exceptional value.
Whenever possible, a trademark notice (TM) or service mark notice (SM), as applicable, should follow the mark. After a service mark or trademark has been registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, notice of registration is given by the use of the ® symbol. This ® notice must appear once on all ads, brochures, and promotional materials displaying the mark – preferably in the first or more prominent place the mark appears. The only exception is that exterior and permanent interior signage does not require the use of the registration mark ®.