Lowe's Home Improvement Case Study

Home Depot is a leader in the home improvement retailer industry. While many companies are falling behind Amazon and Walmart, Home Depot continues to beat its earnings estimates and attract investors. This part of the report will analyze the core competencies, strengths, and weaknesses of Home Depot to give insight into its recent successes and interpret possible downfalls.

The contemporary period is usually thought to have started around the 1940’s, after the end of World War Two. The experience of WWII changed the way that people around the globe live and think as many had begun to lead prosperous lives however the contemporary stories of the time would attempt to highlight the harsh realities that lied under the surface and were are still apparent in everyday life. An example of a contemporary author that writes about the luxuries of life while simultaneously relating his common experiences to the horrific tragedies of war was in Brian Turner’s “At Lowes Home Improvement Center.” Contemporary writing usually takes place in a realistic setting in the same time frame that the author is writing in such as in

Lowe’s Company has been in business for over 60 years. The company is the second largest home improvement retailer in the world and employs more than 215,000 employees. The company’s home base is Mooresville, North Carolina. Standard & Poor ranks Lowe’s as #48 . Presently, Lowe’s stock, which is identified on the New York Stock Exchange as LOW, is selling for right under $20 a share. This price has been consistent and is comparable to their biggest competitor Home Depot, Inc whose stock has remained steady at $23.

Lowes offers the customer everything needed to build, maintain, beautify and enjoy their homes. They have also added major appliances and home electronics to the list of their merchandise offered. Although times have changed since Lowes opened their door is 1946 as a small hardware store, their values have not. Lowes slogan is to never stop improving. They continue to be committed to offering high quality home improvement product at everyday low prices, while delivering excellent customer service. Lowes has been able to establish a lasting reputation for low prices by dealing directly with the manufactures and eliminating the wholesalers. They are well known for regularly providing discounts and excellent offers to their customers. The

B&B Consulting Services was requested to evaluate, assess, analyze and make recommendations to Lowe’s Home Improvement in the areas of strategy for growth improvement. The following information will give Lowe’s a better understanding of its company and what improvements can be made in the short-term and long-term.

Lowe’s is part of an oligopoly type market structure. An oligopoly is a situation in which a particular market is controlled by a small group of firms with at least two firms controlling the market. The main key to behavior in an oligopoly is that companies must take into account what other companies will do. In perfect competition, firms are price-takers and can ignore other firms (Basic Economics, 2009). The home improvement retail stores are an industry that includes Home Depot, Lowe’s, Builders Square, and in other states, Menards.  Smaller companies have to try to compete with them to stay in business.

Home Depot strives to provide the highest quality service to its customers. Home Depot achieves this by hiring professionals such as, carpenters, plumbers, and paint specialists. These experts are invaluable resources for less knowledgeable customers looking for a certain product or working on a new project. The Home Depot staff can help customers pick out larger and more difficult items such as showers, vinyl siding, carpet, appliances, and plumbing. After the purchase, Home Depot will have the items delivered and installed in the customer’s home. Home Depot’s focus on “product authority” is one of the main and drivers for the company’s high quality service.

ROA is considered the best overall indicator of the efficiency of assets used in a company. Home Depot and Lowe’s ROA ratio both moved down due to the downturn in the industry but Home Depot was able to improve 2010.

The Lowe's Home Improvement store located in eastern Scioto County is located at 7915 Ohio River Road in Wheelersburg; telephone number (740) 574-6200. It is the largest home improvement store in Scioto County. Lowe's is a huge store, selling lumber, hardware, paint, wallpaper, cabinets, carpet, appliances, plumbing, electrical, tools, lighting, lawn and gardening, grills, lawn tractors, windows, doors, molding, and ready made sheds. So basically if you are looking to fix or repair your home, you need to make a run to Lowe's. Lowe's can be pricey, so if extreme budget watching is called for, be sure to check with other sources, like salvage yards, or personal sales from the newspaper classified ads or even internet message boards. But if

The company that I have chosen for this assignment and project is Lowe 's Companies, Inc. Lowes strongly focuses on the mission statement “helping the customers to improve their homes”. The company started in 1921 as a small store in North Carolina. Great success and high demand of Lowe’s products led to an increase in the number of stores. By 1955, there were five more functional stores. Rapid growth took place around 1960s. Carl Buchan was one of the founders of Lowe’s, who died in year 1960. Exactly a year later in 1961, the company went public. This was the time when Lowe’s was given its name. Initially it was called North Wilkesboro Hardware Company. By 1979, Lowe’s established more than 50 stores in the United

I decided to do my research at Lowe’s Home and Improvement. Lowe’s Home and Improvement is a hardware store that sales everything from your basic household appliances to minor cleaning supplies. Lowe’s believes that in order to maintain great customer service they feel that they must follow these simple rules: Provide customers with environmentally-responsible products, packaging and services at everyday low prices, educate and engage employees, customers and others on the importance of conserving resources, reducing waste and recycling, review and communicate progress made toward achieving established goals and objectives, and to engage on public policy issues related to sustainability. In this report I will discuss how I observed two

This paper gives the reader an insight into how a manager in a competitive industry in a two-firm constant sum game makes decisions. The writer will be playing the role of a Home Depot, Inc. manager, and the major competitor is Lowe’s, Inc. Home Depot is the largest United States (U.S.) home-improvement retailer while Lowe’s is the second-largest U.S. home-improvement retailer. This is significant because what one company does affects the other. To compare the two companies their company profiles were reviewed. The latest news headlines on both companies were

The local businesses tapping into more markets with the help of Globalization. The world is changing, we are living longer than before, capita income has gone up, advance in science and technology and change of poverty due to globalization taking part of our lives (Bildt). Employment and economic growth are recovering almost everywhere. “Since 1990, the share of people living in extreme poverty in the developing world has fallen from 47% to 14%, and child mortality -- a critical indicator -- has been halved” (Bildt). It all depends on what area you live that is changing because of the consumers believe certain countries make the best product.

Globalization is something that has been occurring since early in the history of entrepreneurs, and something that will not be going away anytime soon. Businesses can enjoy many benefits from globalization that include an increased audience to market their products to, and quicker sharing of innovative ideas. The advantages of globalization are just as much a disadvantage. The increase in competition between domestic and foreign business has lead to a decrease in employment and an increase in outsourcing. Businesses need

The stores have restaurant, childcare facilities and plenty of parking. Customers can drop off their kids at the playroom and have delicious meal when they are tired. All of these not only provide customer with a comfortable shopping environment but also let them make an ‘IKEA trip’ and enjoy the fun of buying. Besides, IKEA’s distinctive show rooms help creating differentiation. Products are strategically placed in different small spaces like rooms which allow customers imaging this furniture in their own home. This makes everything looks more attractive.