In 1984, the chemical manufacturing company W.R. Grace & Co. announced its intentions to enter the home improvement retail business, hiring Bernard R. Kossar and Frank Doczi to head the new chain.

The merger was completed in February 1988, with Frank Doczi left in charge of the Home Quarters division (Kossar moves on to found OW Office Warehouse, an office supply store that used a logo and branding similar to that of HQ).

Under Hechinger, HQ expanded to much of the United States as a viable competitor to Home Depot, Lowe's, and Builders Square.

The Hechinger family sold the company to Los Angeles investors Leonard Green & Partners for $507 million (~$894 million in 2023) in July 1997, and the new management launched new, smaller concept stores called Better Spaces and Wye River Hardware & Home searching for a niche.

After several rounds of store closings, Hechinger Co. and Home Quarters Warehouse filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on June 11, 1999, but the reorganization failed.