Battered by the free-fall in the housing market, Home Depot will close its 34 Expo Design Centers, five YardBIRDS, two Design Centers and HD Bath, a bath remodeling business with seven sites. In addition, the company will eliminate 7,000 of its roughly 300,000 jobs, including 500 from the headquarters staff. AP on Yahoo.com (Jan. 26, [...]
Sales are down overall, but less-than-$25 purchases are holding up a lot better than $600-plus purchases. “The bifurcation between low ticket and high ticket has become more dramatic,” according to one industry observer. The New York Times (Aug. 20, 2008)
Taunton Press¸ publisher of hobbyist magazines such as Fine Woodworking, has cut 9 employees from its staff last week. The layoffs come as the company tries to find ways to deal with the down turned economy, which has hit the homebuilding market particularly hard. The company says that while it needs to trim some parts [...]
Natural Home, a green-themed magazine with a small circulation base of 87,000, has introduced three new projects to extend their brand. On Earth Day of 2009, Natural Home, in conjunction with PBS, will be launching the “Natural Home Living” show, which will air weekly episodes for 13 weeks. The magazine will design, provide [...]
At a shareholders’ meeting in Charlotte, NC, this week, Lowe’s Cos. ceo Robert Niblock reaffirmed the retailer’s plans to open 120 new stores this year, its commitment to gain share in the home-improvement market and its belief in long-term prospects for growth. The Wall Street Journal (June 4, 2008) Paid subscription may be required.
Earnings fell precipitously in the quarter ending May 4 to $356 million, or 21 cents a share, from $1.05 billion, or 53 cents a share, in the prior year. The results included a charge of $543 million to close 15 underperforming stores and eliminate 50 planned new store openings. The New York Times (May 20, 2008)
“‘These results should not prove terribly surprising,’ wrote Goldman Sachs analyst Matthew J. Fassler in a client note.” Competitor Home Depot Inc. is due to report first quarter earnings tomorrow. AP via The New York Times (May 19, 2008)
The underperforming stores to be shuttered in the next sixty days include: three in Wisconsin, two in Ohio, two in New Jersey, two in Indiana and one each in Kentucky, Louisiana, Minnesota, North Dakota, New York and Vermont. This is the first time the world’s largest home improvement retailer will close one of its flagship stores for [...]