Lowe's Essay

1014 Words5 Pages

Lowe's is the second largest home improvement retailer in the United States. It holds about 6 percent of the $700 billion home improvement market and ranks seventh largest U.S. retailer overall. More than 1,250 Lowe's stores in 49 states serve do-it-

yourself customers, do-it-for me customers using store's installation services, and commercial customers, including professional contractors, electricians, landscapers, painters, and plumbers. Lowe's carries 40,000 products for home decorating,

maintenance, repair, remodeling, and construction. Lowe's installation services

generate approximately 6 percent of the corporation's total revenue.

Lowe's was founded in 1946 by Carl Buchan when he took 50% interest in Mr.

L.S. Lowe's …show more content…

By late 1960s, Lowe's had more than 50 stores with

sales figures around $100 million.

About this time, rising cost of buying a home or having one remodeled by a

professional led more homeowners to take on construction projects themselves. Lowe's management began to notice that their sales figures were moving up and down with the housing trends. Around 1971J Lowe's developed a financing program that helped local builders get loans and coordinated building plans with the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). Lowe's then helped contractors fill out the government forms and trained construction companies to build FHA - approved homes. Lowe's financing innovation increased their revenues from $170 million in 1971, to more than $900 million by 1979 (when there were more than 200 stores in the chain).
When new home construction came to a standstil .the Management Team ("Management") decided to target the individual customer. Management believed that increasing consumer sales would reduce the company's vulnerability during economic and seasonal down swings. In 1980, Lowe's found its income decrease by 24% when

the new housing construction decreased, however
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their "do-it-yourself' …show more content…

The web page describes the company's view on the importance of teambuilding.
Management's teambuilding strategy focuses on professional development and improving on-the-job performance. Their approach theory is by making the employees ("team members") feel empowered and encouraging the team members to take part in team functions outside their standard projects.
One strategy Management used to get team members to buy-in was requiring monthly Saturday meetings for team leaders. Management and team leaders discuss current issues, various management styles, and what currently is working to encourage and motivate team members to keep on task.
In conclusion, it seems Lowe's corporation has many levels of teams from executives, middle managers, and front line employees. All of these teams contribute to the success of the