The former NAPA Auto Parts store at 142 Franklin St. in Melrose has undergone a noticable remodeling in recent weeks, as it’s reborn as the private office of an expanding e-commerce retailer.
David Ingemi is the CEO of a ProMAX Commerce, an online Amazon.com franchise that focuses specifically on the sale of home improvement and construction products.
Coinciding with ProMAX’s Commerce move into it new office space at Franklin and Albion Streets is the future launch of Gatzis.com, which Ingemi said looks to expand from home improvement products into automotive, marine and office supplies.
“We’re trying to recreate the retail space in an e-commerce environment,” he said. The new website has a target launch date of Jan. 1, 2012.
Ingemi himself grew up in the Highlands, just around the corner from his new office.
“The neighbors have been great,” he said about the reaction to the remodeled storefront.
Ingemi launched ProMAX Commerce two-and-a-half years ago, as the era of big box retailers such as Home Depot continues to thrive, with a plethora of those big box stores a short car ride away from those living in the Greater Boston area, he said.
However, Massachusetts residents living further to the northwest of Boston, for example, live in an area that doesn’t necessarily have the population to support a big box retailer, Ingemi said. That’s where e-commerce retailers like ProMAX Commerce come in.
“It’s bringing retail to your doorstep,” Ingemi said, adding that while younger people are used to shopping extensively online, older people have become more comfortable shopping online, which also provides a convenience factor for older residents.
“With the newer technologies, it’s getting easier and calmer for those folks,” he said. “The barrier of entry has been lowered a bit.”