32 Super Amazing Facts About The Home Depot That You Should Know

When it comes to home improvement, the first name that comes to mind is The Home Depot. It is the largest home improvement retailer and has its headquarters in Atlanta. This American company was founded by  Bernard Marcus, Arthur Blank, Ron Brill, and Pat Farrah in 1978 and deals in a wide range of products starting from hardware tools to construction products and much more.

Here we present 32 super amazing facts about The Home Depot that you should know:

1. The first 2 stores leased from J. C. Penney: In 1979, The Home Depot opened its first 2 stores. The spaces were originally hypermarkets and were leased to the company by J. C. Penney.
2. First franchise in Hollywood: The year 1981 saw The Home Depot branching out by opening its stores in Hollywood and also in Ft. Lauderdale.
3. The Home Depot goes public: Within 2 years of its inception, The Home Depot went public. On September 22, 1981, the company raised $4.093 million by going public on NASDAQ.
4. Next leap to New York Stock Exchange: Within 3 years of going public on NASDAQ, The Home Depot made an entry into the New York Stock Exchange in 1984.
5. A boom in home improvement needs: The 1990s saw an increased demand for home improvement products and the presence of The Home Depot during this time, fueled the company’s growth.
6. Super-fast expansion: The Home Depot expanded very quickly and within the first 5 years of inception, the company made its presence known through the 19 stores that the company opened. The sales were also high and had crossed the $255 million mark.
7. Amazing growth rate: The superfast expansion and high sales fueled the company’s growth rate, which surpassed the growth rate of Target, Best-Buy and also Walmart
8. Acquisition of Bowater Home Center: The Home Depot marked its entry in the Dallas market with the acquisition of Bowater Home Center in the year 1984.
9. Acquisition of Aikenhead’s Hardware: The Home Depot acquired the Canadian based hardware chain, Aikenhead’s Hardware in the year 1994. For $150 million, 75 percent of the shares were acquired and it was later that the Aikenhead’s stores were converted to The Home Depot outlets.
10. Remarkably low price tags: The Home Depot’s popularity comes from the fact that the company offers products at unbeatably low prices than its competitors.
11. Additional discount: If one finds products at a lower price than what The Home Depot quotes, the company offers an additional 10 percent discount. All that one has to do is show an advertisement of the same or a photo of the advertisement to avail the discount.
12. Employee cum Olympics winner: The Home Depot is a solo company that has employees who have won an Olympics medal in some or the other sport. In comparison to other companies, the company also ranks much higher when it comes to the number of Olympics medals won by the employees of any company.
13. Olympics sponsor: The company has a special place for sports enthusiasts and it is evident from the fact that till 2005, the company has been a sponsor of the United States and the Canadian Olympics teams.
14. Free home delivery: Anyone making a purchase of $45 at The Home Depot is eligible for home delivery at zero cost.
15. Everyday deals: Customers visiting The Home Depot can reap the advantages of amazing deals and offers. These offers are announced on a daily basis for its customers.
16. Discount for damaged package: The Home Depot offers an additional discount of 10 percent if customers find the package of the product that they are purchasing to be damaged.
17. Reading the fine lines on the price tags: At The Home Depot, the price reveals a lot about what customers can expect in the coming days. It is said that if the price ends with 0.06, the product is being offered as a part of stock clearance. Similarly, a price ending with 0.03 implies that a further price drop of 3 cents can be expected within 6 weeks if the product is still available.
18. Rack of paint: At The Home Depot, one will find a rack of paint, which were ordered by customers, but since the color did not turn out to be as per requirement, the paint was not sold. However, if any customer finds it to suit their taste, they can purchase the paint at a heavily discounted price.
19. Reap sale benefits even after purchase: The Home Depot offers its customer exclusive price protection for 30 days. With this price protection, a customer can avail the discount on products that went on sale even if the product is already purchased.
20. Coupons from competitors: Certain outlets of The Home Depot accepts coupons from its competitor brands. All one needs to do is check if a store near them accepts it.
21. ESPN’s College Gameday sponsor: The Home Depot has been ESPN’s home improvement sponsor since 2007.
22. Online reach: The Home Depot has a wide online reach and is said to attract more than 120 million visitors on its online portal every year.
23. A leader in e-commerce: It is in 2011 that The Home Depot entered the e-commerce segment and more than 6 percent of its sales are done through the company’s online portal. This is much higher than 4 percent which the company’s rivals report.
24. Rent rather than buy: For expensive equipment, one can choose to rent it rather than purchasing it. The Home Depot’s online portal has all the details related to the availability of products on rent, the rental value and also other terms and conditions.
25. Canada’s The Home Depot: In Canada alone, The Home Depot has 182 stores and employs more than 28,000 people.
26. Failure in China: The Home Depot’s efforts to enter the Chinese market turned futile after it had to shut down all of its 12 stores. It was the clashing culture of China and the company’s do-it-yourself concept, which led to the company’s failure.
27. Efficient returns on investment: When it comes to securing returns on investments, The Home Depot is extremely efficient, as it has a track record of surpassing its returns.
28. Reap benefits of low-interest rate: To reap the benefits of low-interest rate, the management of The Home Depot decided to carry over its debt of $20 billion.
29. Diversification in the pipeline: The company has shifted its focus from expansion with new stores to diversification to newer segments.
30. The Home Depot Smart Home laboratory: The company created The Home Depot Smart Home, a live-in laboratory for engineering students. The lab is in collaboration with Duke University’s Edmund T. Pratt Jr. School of Engineering.
31. Purchase of NFL team: The Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank purchased Atlanta Falcons, the NFL team in 2002. But, the company could associate with the team only in 2017 after acquiring the naming rights of the 13-acres park that is adjacent to the Falcon’s new stadium.
32. Surprising ratios: The Home Depot added only one store in the United States in the year 2013. But its rival, Lowe’s marked its presence with 300 stores. However, the growth in revenue over a span of 5 years, even from the single added store by The Home Depot was much higher than the figures achieved by the 300 stores opened by Lowe’s.