Though many wear red, the Ace I managed for a few years had black vests. With the exception of a few large groups (like Westlake), each Ace is independently owned and part of the Ace co-op, but get to make their own choices about things like uniform, sales, and stock.
I intentionally said blue vest because while an Ace employee (in whatever color vest/apron their store chooses) would take the time to explain why you can’t have the thing you think you need, a guy in a blue vest (if you can even find one) is likely to say “oh, I guess we’re out. Maybe we can order it for you online…” before wandering off.