The Hope Group Today Announced HopeDirect.com eCommerce Website Went Live August 1, 2014

NORTHBOROUGH, Mass. - Aug. 6, 2013 - PRLog -- Northborough MA - The Hope Group, a subsidiary of THG Corporation, today announced the planned launch in August 1, 2014 of its online parts ordering website, HopeDirect.com, featuring the Parker Hydraulic, Pneumatic, and Hose & Fittings products that it has been selling for over 50 years. Since becoming the authorized Parker distributor for the New England region in 1960, The Hope Group has been providing local OEM and MRO users with the full range of Parker products including pumps, valves, hose, fittings, manifolds, cylinders and other industrial products.

Through its network of seven Parker Stores, from Maine to Rhode Island, The Hope Group has been very accessible for its customers seeking same-day replacement of hose assemblies and that important replacement part for a machine or system necessary to keep manufacturing up and running. But, in today’s complex world, there has been an increased need to respond online to its customer requests as well as to operate convenient local storefronts.

More and more the industrial manufacturer and commercial operator have turned to the Internet to short-cut the identification and delivery of needed spare parts. And according to Randy Roy, VP of Operations for THG Corporation, the parent of The Hope Group and The Parker Stores of New England, the need to offer a direct online service for Parker products is here.

“With immediate and direct access to $150 million in Parker products, our customers will be able to get even the hardest to find parts on a one or two-day basis,” said Randy. “In the interest of minimizing customer downtime and simplifying order entry, we are providing ‘user friendly’ online access through our own website: www.HopeDirect.com,” he added.

HopeDirect.com has been in development for two years, according to THG Corporation Marketing Manager, Richard Wright, and has completed final beta testing. “We are putting the finishing touches on the interface pages and the software development firm that we have contracted with to bring it to life projects going live on or about August 1, 2014,” said Wright. “This website will be very easy to navigate, it will provide a deep inventory of Hydraulic, Pneumatic, and Hose & Fittings Parker products, all of which are “in stock” or else they won’t show up on the website. There is no need to wait four to six weeks for a factory order. These parts are itching to ship,” said Wright.

“We are not abandoning our Parker Stores,” said Randy Roy. “In fact, we have added two new stores in the past two years and have plans to add more,” he added. “The stores are branches of The Hope Group, and provide convenient, local distribution of needed replacement parts, and more importantly, they provide an experienced technician that can consult with customers about their requirements and how best to solve their problems,” said Randy.

Much like anything else in modern life, the customer expects the full range of service from providers such as The Hope Group. Sometimes they need a salesman to come to their plant. Sometimes they need to stop at the branch location of The Hope Group, such as our seven Parker Stores, and sometimes they need to place a quick online order through an active account with The Hope Group – or just a quick credit card order to meet an immediate need, where they know exactly which part they want.

“The HopeDirect.com website will let customers drill down from general product categories, such as Hydraulics or Pneumatics, to specific product types, such as Cylinders and Valves, and then to the size and price page for each item. Once they fill their “basket” with their order, it’s either pay with a credit card, or engage their approved account code – and the order is placed, approved and on its way,” said Wright. The other company websites, including TheHopeGroup.com, SorensenSystems.com, and HopeAir.com will all feature links to HopeDirect.com to make it easier for customers to find the parts-ordering website.

“Our customers have been asking for this convenience, and we are pleased that we are only a few short weeks away from launching the website,” said Randy. “It’s another way that The Hope Group brings solutions for OEM’s and MRO customers in a changing marketplace,” said Randy.

THG Corporation was founded in 1933 as the Fitchburg Rubber Company. It expanded and relocated to Northborough MA in 1985, and today has eight locations in four New England states. The company represents hundreds of industrial suppliers, including Parker Hannifin, Kaeser Compressor, GE Intelligent Platforms, IDEC, GEMS, Ham-Let, and many more. In addition to Hydraulics, Pneumatics, and Hose & Fittings, it offers O-rings and Sealing solutions, Filtration, Instrumentation, Fluid Controls, and Engineered Skid-based systems for bottle blowing and general manufacturing. You can read more about The Hope Group at www.TheHopeGroup.com.