Content about Home Centers

May 16, 2012
Home Depot lawn products are golden in Q1

Home Depot’s Craig Menear, executive VP merchandising, shared details and data from a first quarter that saw double-digit comps in certain seasonal product categories.

Overall, Home Depot saw comp-store sales increase 5.8% in the first quarter of strong sales and earnings growth.

May 15, 2012
Home Depot lifted by warm weather in Q1

Atlanta-based Home Depot made first-quarter history for the period ended April 29 with net earnings crossing the $1 billion mark.

The company reported net income of $1.035 billion, up 27.5% from the same quarter last year. Sales were also up, rising 5.9% to $17.81 billion in the quarter. Comparable-store sales were 5.8%, the highest figure in more than seven years.

May 15, 2012
Shoplifting suspect walks into police stakeout

A Bronx, N.Y., man whom police believe was stashing Home Depot merchandise in a garden center trash can -- and then fetching it after the store was closed -- has been arrested, according to an article on NorthJersey.com.

May 10, 2012
Lowe’s installer thrives in Dayton

Highfield Door Sales, a Kettering, Ohio, business that installs garage door openers for nine local Lowe’s stores, has purchased and is renovating a 20,000-sq.-ft. former wine and beer warehouse store to expand its operations, according to an article in the Dayton Daily News. 

The family-owned business, which started in 2009 with just one employee, currently operates out of a leased 1,700-sq.-ft. building in this Dayton-area town.

May 9, 2012
Lowe’s realigns senior leadership team

Lowe’s has announced a realignment of its leadership team to “more sharply focus the company on strategies to create and deliver seamless customer experiences.” Seamless retail across the brick and mortar and digital channels is a major focus of the retailer’s strategy. 

May 8, 2012
Nest thermostat finds a place on Lowe’s shelves

Nest Labs announced that its Nest Learning Thermostat is on the shelves of more than 500 Lowe’s stores plus Lowes.com.

The product will find a home in the retailer’s new Innovation merchandising displays featuring interactive end caps that display new products in home improvement.

May 7, 2012
Former HD exec joins J.C. Penney

Ken Hannah, a former senior VP at Home Depot, has been named the new CFO at J.C. Penney.

Hannah brings more than 20 years of finance, operations and audit experience from a wide range of companies that include General Electric, Boeing and The Home Depot. He will report to chief operating officer Mike Kramer.

April 29, 2012
Stolen copper wire fetches tidy sum

A San Diego man is facing felony changes for purchasing copper wire at Home Depot and Lowe’s stores with counterfeit barcodes and then reselling it to recycling centers for a hefty profit, according to an article in the San Diego Union-Tribune. 

April 23, 2012
Lowe’s creates two new executive positions

Mooresville, N.C.-based has Lowe’s created two new positions for high-ranking executives. The promotions for Greg Bridgeford and Rick Damron are described by the company as an effort to support the retailer’s customer experience goals.

The promotions will take effect May 5.

With more than 30 years of experience in home improvement, Bridgeford, 57, will become chief customer officer, responsible for creating experiences that will best serve customers and differentiate Lowe's from its competitors.

April 19, 2012
Shoplifter tip leads to arrest

A tip to police about a planned shoplifting crime ended in an arrest outside a Lowe’s store in Monroe, La., according to an article in the News Star.

April 17, 2012
Lowe’s plans to raise nearly $2 billon from debt sale

Lowe’s has announced an agreement to sell $500 million of 1.625% notes due 2017, $750 million of 3.12% notes due 2022 and $750 million of 4.65% notes due 2042. Estimated net proceeds from this offering will be approximately $1.982 billion, after deducting offering expenses and underwriters' discounts.

April 16, 2012
Dave & Buster’s hires former HD real estate exec

Dave & Buster's, Inc., the chain of restaurant/entertainment outlets, has named John Mulleady as its senior VP development. In addition to overseeing all real estate and construction projects, Mulleady will lead the company's expansion strategy, driving D&B's growth into new and under-penetrated markets. Dave & Buster's currently has 59 locations in the U.S. and Canada, and expects to open several more in the near future.

April 14, 2012
Lowe’s chief information officer to retire

Mooresville, N.C.-based announced today that Michael K. Brown, executive VP and chief information officer, has announced plans to accept the company's Voluntary Separation Program and retire after almost 28 years with the company.

The company has already begun a search for a chief information officer. Brown will continue to serve in his present role for a period of time to assist with the transition.

April 13, 2012
American Standard rolls out new faucets

High-performing bathroom faucets American Standard are now available nationwide at The Home Depot in the Marquette, Espana and Alejandra collections.

The products’ water-saving fixtures include washerless ceramic disc valves and the exclusive no-tools Speed Connect system.

April 13, 2012
Home Depot opens big-format store

Home Depot has opened a 211,000-sq.-ft. “superstore” in Anaheim Hills, Calif., which it describes as “almost twice the size of [a] regular Home Depot.” The unit, situated in an affluent area of Orange County, is an existing store that was remodeled. Among the changes are:

April 12, 2012
Bank robber stashes loot in Lowe’s trash can

A suspected bank robber in Santa Fe, N.M. was arrested this week after a Lowe’s employee uncovered more than $48,000 in stolen cash from a store trash can, according to an article in the Albuquerque Journal. 

Jaime Jesus Sanchez-Ramos, age 23, was arrested on April 10 and charges with an April 2 robbery at U.S. Bank. The suspect, who was wearing a green hooded jacket and a ski mask, allegedly entered the building and, at gunpoint, demanded money from a teller. Sanchez-Ramos fled with a box of cash stuffed with $52,650, according an FBI affidavit filed in court.

April 11, 2012
Lowe’s marks anniversary of Sanford destruction

Marking the one-year anniversary of the April 16 tornado that destroyed the retailers Sanford, N.C., store, Lowe’s today launched a “Give Back. Pay it Forward” event with American Red Cross.

From April 13-17, Lowe’s has set up collection areas in Sanford and online so people can donate to the relief organization. The American Red Cross will also host a blood drive on April 16 at the store.

April 10, 2012
Family Dollar hires Lowe’s exec

Family Dollar Stores has announced the appointment of Jon Broz to the position of VP and assistant general counsel, litigation. Broz comes to Family Dollar from Lowe's, where he served most recently as VP and assistant general counsel, litigation.

Prior to joining Lowe's, Broz worked for Collective Brands, and previous to that, he was a litigation partner at Husch & Eppenberger (now Husch Blackwell Sanders) in Kansas City, Mo.

April 6, 2012
Multi-state theft ring busted

An organized retail theft ring that targeted 70 Home Depot stores in six states has been taken down by multi-agency task force after the arrest of three men in New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Two other suspects are still be sought. 

April 5, 2012
Short and Paulk makes acquisition in Georgia

Short and Paulk Supply Company of Tifton, Ga., acquired Laing Hardware in Dawson, Ga.

Laing Hardware was opened in 1983, by Jack Laing, as a division of Laing Implement Company. 

Short and Paulk has closed the store for approximately three weeks to remodel and re-merchandise the location. The retailer said it hopes to be re-opened for business in Dawson in early March. It plans on holding a grand opening in April.

April 3, 2012
HD continues to centralize distribution

Home Depot plans to lay off 225 customer support and distribution workers in Baton Rouge, La., over the next 18 months, according to an article in The Advocate.

April 3, 2012
Lowe’s looks to build in Cape Cod

Mooresville, N.C.-based Lowe’s is in the early stages of bringing a store to South Dennis, Mass., on Cape Cod.

"The site Lowe's is pursuing has been designated in the Cape Cod Commission's Regional Policy Plan as being within an Economic Center," said Stacey Lentz, a Lowe's spokeswoman. "We will work with the town, Cape Cod Commission and stakeholders to make this a project the community and Lowe's can be proud of."

April 3, 2012
MyLowe’s digital report card

The April issue of Home Channel News included a review and analysis of MyLowes.com, one of the most ambitious home improvement websites in the industry today. Our digital version (registration required) has even more analysis.

April 2, 2012
Home channel employees praised on Capitol Hill

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky,), speaking on the floor of the U.S. Senate on tornado relief efforts last month, singled out several lumberyards and home-improvement retailers for their assistance in the aftermath of last month’s tornados. 

April 2, 2012
Home Depot fine-tunes its DC network

While looking to open a 1 million-sq.-ft. distribution facility somewhere in Georgia, the company is preparing to close a Rapid Deployment Center (RDC) in Braselton.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported the Braselton center -- the first of the company’s nationwide network of 19 distribution centers -- will close by the end of the year. The Braselton center was not mechanized. 

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