Ace Hardware and OPI Unveil Exclusive OPI Color Palette by Clark+Kensington

OAK BROOK, IL--(Marketwired - Jun 10, 2014) - Ace Hardware, the largest retailer-owned hardware cooperative in the industry, and OPI, the world's premier professional nail lacquer brand, have come together to bring OPI's most popular colors to life with an exclusive color palette by Clark+Kensington®, Ace's premium paint line. The alliance between Ace Hardware and OPI is the first-ever collaboration of its kind and combines Ace's expertise in paint with OPI's expertise in color to create the OPI Color Palette by Clark+Kensington. The new color palette will launch this month in over 3,200 Ace Hardware stores nationwide and offer consumers the opportunity to bring their favorite nail lacquer colors to life within their home décor.

"We are thrilled to offer women a unique way to extend their personal style into their decorating style through paint color," said Mary Rice, President and General Manager of Ace Paint. "The OPI Color Palette by Clark+Kensington was curated to encourage consumers to bring fashion-forward colors into their homes through the hues they've grown to love in the nail salon." 

The OPI Color Palette by Clark+Kensington will launch with three collections comprised of six iconic OPI shades each, for a total of 18 new paint colors. Each of the OPI Color Palette by Clark+Kensington collections will also offer five coordinating Clark+Kensington colors, providing additional inspiration for homeowners.

• The Artist - For the Original, Inspired, Spirited & Charming
  • Featuring OPI's Keeping Suzi at Bay, Miami Beet, Don't Touch My Tutu!, Gargantuan Green Grape, Samoan Sand and I Eat Mainely Lobster
  • Clark+Kensington pairings include So Sophisticated N-C17, Boutique Chic 06D-1, Let's Have a Party 32B-5, Designer White 1066 and Star Anise N-W32
• The Wild Heart - For the Fresh, Daring, Dynamic & Chic
  • Featuring OPI's Can't Find My Czechbook, Black Onyx, My Pointe Exactly, Do You Lilac It?, Suzi Says Feng Shui, and Vant to Bite My Neck?
  • Clark+Kensington pairings include Lavender Bliss 41B-2, Cymbidium Orchid 23C-5, Late Night Serenade N-C21, Silent White CW-C1 and Fashion Fix 01C-6
• The Romantic - For the Sophisticated, Confident, Iconic & Glam
  • Featuring OPI's OPI Red, Nein! Nein! Nein! OK Fine!, My Very First Knockwurst, Chick Flick Cherry, My Vampire is Buff and Over the Taupe.
  • Clark+Kensington pairings include Garden Stone N-C10, Swaying Palm Trees 25B-7, Natural White CW-W1, Crazy in Love 06C-1 and Wisdom of the Ages 25B-5

"It was important for OPI to partner with Ace Hardware, a known industry expert in paint, to bring our iconic colors to life," said Suzi Weiss-Fischmann, OPI Co-Founder & Executive Vice President. "The paint colors in the OPI Color Palette by Clark+Kensington offer a refreshing alternative to the home décor category and we're excited to give our fans the opportunity to experience their favorite OPI colors in a new way. Clark+Kensington is now fashion's favorite paint!"

Clark+Kensington, a premium line of paint+primer in one, is available exclusively at Ace Hardware and its semi-gloss finish was ranked number one by a leading consumer magazine in recent tests of interior paints. Launched in 2011, the paint line was introduced with an original palette of 120 perfectly harmonizing colors. Last month, Ace introduced a groundbreaking new Clark+Kensington color palette featuring designer-selected hues that cover the entire color spectrum, along with easy to use tools that help homeowners find their perfect color. The Clark+Kensington paint line and OPI Color Palette will be showcased within the newly designed, boutique style Ace Paint Studio, offering consumers a world-class paint experience at their neighborhood Ace.

For more information on the OPI Color Palette by Clark+Kensington, please stop by your neighborhood Ace Hardware store or visit www.clarkandkensington.com. 

About Ace Hardware
For 90 years, Ace Hardware has been known as the place with the helpful hardware folks in thousands of neighborhoods across America, providing customers with a more personal kind of helpful. In 2014, Ace ranked "Highest in Customer Satisfaction with Home Improvement Retail Stores, Eight Years in a Row," according to J.D. Power. With more than 4,850 hardware stores locally owned and operated across the globe, Ace is the largest hardware cooperative in the industry. Headquartered in Oak Brook, Ill., Ace and its subsidiaries currently operate 14 distribution centers in the U.S. and also have distribution capabilities in Shanghai, China; Panama City, Panama; and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Its retailers' stores are located in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and approximately 60 countries. For more information on Ace, visit www.acehardware.com.

About OPI
As the world leader in the professional nail care industry, OPI is committed to providing high-quality products and services to both salons and their customers, along with a focus on industry safety and innovation. Known for its exceptional formula, fashionable colors and iconic names, OPI's heavily-pigmented lacquers are super rich, long-lasting and chip-resistant -- offering an affordable luxury to consumers. Each lacquer features OPI's exclusive ProWide™ Brush for the ultimate in application. Currently, OPI is available in over 100 countries and offers a full line of professional items, including nail treatments, finishing products, lotions, manicure/pedicure products, files, tools and acrylics. In addition, OPI offers more than 100 GelColor shades. OPI places a strong emphasis on corporate social responsibility by raising funds and awareness for numerous charities through retail partnerships and grassroots philanthropic initiatives. For more information, visit OPI at www.opi.com. Follow OPI on Twitter @OPI_Products or become a fan at Facebook.com/OPIproducts.