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Lowe's Companies, Inc.
Type	Public (NYSE: LOW)
Founded	1946 (North Wilkesboro, NC)
Headquarters	Mooresville, NC
Key people	Robert Niblock, CEO & Chairman [ Larry Stone, COO & President
Industry	Home Improvement
Products	Retail - Home Improvement
Revenue	$46.9 billion USD (2006)
Employees	210,000
Slogan	Let's Build Something Together.
Website	www.lowes.com

Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse (NYSE: LOW) is a US-based chain of retail home improvement and appliance stores. Founded in 1946 in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, the chain now serves over 13 million customers a week in its over 1,400 stores (1,424) in 49 states. When the Vermont location opens in January 2008, Lowe's will have at least one store in every state^[1] and with the exception of Vermont and Wyoming, each of the other 48 states is home to multiple stores. (Wyoming is also home to a Lowe's distribution center). Beginning in 2007 Lowe's will start to operate in Canada with up to 10 stores opening up in Ontario. In 2009 Lowe's will start to operate in Mexico opening between 3 and 5 stores in Monterrey. Lowe's Companies, Inc. is 45 on the Fortune 500 list. The chain is now based in Mooresville, North Carolina, about 30 minutes north of uptown Charlotte. It is currently the second-largest hardware chain in the United States of America.

Contents 1 History 2 Organization 2.1 Brands 3 Advertising and sponsorships 3.1 Racing sponsorships 4 Lowe's Canada 5 Lowe's Mexico 6 Lowe's benefits, employment, and culture 6.1 Lowe's class actions 7 References 8 External links

Lucius S. Lowe opened Lowe's North Wilkesboro Harrdware in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina in 1921. The business was inherited by his daughter, Ruth, when Lucius died in 1940. She sold the company to her brother, Jim, that same year. Jim Lowe and Ruth's husband, Carl Buchan, both served in World War II, and during the war, the store was run by Ruth and her mother. Jim took Carl (honorably discharged after receiving an injury) on as a partner in 1943. The company expanded in 1944, still in North Wilkesboro.

Under Buchan's management, the store focussed on hardware and building materials. Before then, the product mix also included notions, dry goods, horse tack, snuff, produce, and groceries. The company opened a new store in Sparta, N.C.

Carl Buchan and Jim Lowe differed on expanding the company to new areas, and they split in 1952, with Buchan taking control of the hardware and building supply business, and Lowe taking other joint ventures the two controlled, including a car dealership. Buchan became the sole owner of Lowe's.

Buchan quickly expanded, opening stores by 1955 in Asheville, Charlotte, and Durham, N.C. More stores opened through the 1950s.

In 1960, Carl Buchan died of a heart attack at age 44. Bob Strickland took the company public in 1961 to pay estate costs. By 1962, Lowe's operated 21 stores and reported annual revenues of $32 million.

Lowe's continued to expand throughout the Southeast United States.

It suffered in the 1980s, as many hardware store chains did, due to the advent of The Home Depot, which discounted hardware, lumber and other home improvement supplies. This was made worse by the fact that The Home Depot began its growth in Lowe's market area. In 1994, Lowe's opened its first big-box store, and today most Lowe's stores are of the big-box variety, though some classic format stores remain in smaller markets.

Lowe's has since grown nationally, aided by the purchase of Eagle Hardware & Garden in 1999. It is now the second-largest home improvement chain in North America, and has begun expanding outside the United States.

Lowe's is organized geographically into Divisions (such as Southeast, West, Northeast), Regions (usually designated with a two-digit number, 01, 02, etc. but skips 13, Lowe's does not have number 13 in its stores, regions, or districts), Areas, Districts and then the individual store. A Lowe's store can have anywhere from 80 to over 400 employees depending on the size and sales volume.

As with large retailers across North America, Lowe's also owns and exclusively sells some of the brands it sells. Some of the brands found at the Lowe's stores are:

• Bosch (tools/appliances)
• Black & Decker (tools)
• Char-Broil (grills)
• Choicedek (composite decking)
• DeWalt (tools)
• Fisher & Paykel (appliances)
• Fridgidaire (appliances)
• Harbor Breeze (Ceiling fans and accessories)
• Hitachi (Tools)
• Husqvarna (power equipment)
• Jacuzzi (whirlpool baths)
• John Deere (power equipment)
• Keeney Manufacturing (plumbing supplies)
• Kohler (bath/kitchen)
• Kobalt (tools)
• Larson (storm doors/windows)
• Maytag (appliances)
• Miracle-Gro (garden)
• Olympic (paint)
• Ortho (garden)
• Peachtree (doors/windows)
• Pella (doors/windows)
• Pergo (flooring)
• Plumb Pak (plumbing supplies)
• Portfolio (lighting)
• Roundup (garden)
• Quikrete (building materials)
• Samsung (appliances)
• Scotts (garden)
• Shenandoah Cabinetry (kitchen cabinets)
• Task Force (Tools)
• Therma-Tru (doors/windows)
• TopChoice (lumber)
• Trex (composite decking)
• Troy-bilt (power equipment)
• Valspar (paint; formerly under the name American Tradition)
• Whirlpool (appliances)

Lowe's offers customers about 40,000 products in stock and more through a Special Order Service.

Prior to 2006, Lowe's tagline was "Improving Home Improvement." In 2006, Lowe's adopted the new slogan "Let's Build Something Together."

In 2006 Lowe's partnered with designer Marianne Cusato to develop and offer affordable house plans for the hurricane-affected gulf region. Lowe's is the exclusive retailer for both the plans and building materials for the Lowe's Katrina Cottage. They offer easy construction and affordability, as well as the possibility of expansion. Moreover, they meet all international building codes and exceed hurricane codes. ^[2]

Lowe's has a wide variety of television and radio commercials. A significant number of different racing-inspired commercials can be seen and are often played outside of television race coverage. Gene Hackman's voice can be heard on many commercial advertisements for Lowe's.^[3]

In 2006 Lowe's began sponsoring the radio broadcast booth of the New York Yankees. Frequently during every game Yankees announcer John Sterling states "We are coming to you live from the Lowe's Broadcast Booth. Lowe's: Let's build something together."

Lowe's and other landscaping companies landscape some areas of Busch Gardens Europe.

Lowe's purchased naming rights of Lowe's Motor Speedway (formerly Charlotte Motor Speedway) in Concord, North Carolina in 1999. Lowe's Motor Speedway is home to several auto racing events annually. The corporation also sponsors the 2006 & 2007 NASCAR NEXTEL Cup champion Jimmie Johnson in the #48 Chevy Monte Carlo SS/Impala SS and Busch Series driver Kyle Busch in the #5 Chevy; both teams are owned by Hendrick Motorsports. Previous to the current sponsorship deal with Hendrick Motorsports, Lowe's was the sponsor of the #31 Chevrolet for Richard Childress Racing from 1997 to 2001. Drivers during this period included Mike Skinner and Robby Gordon. Before that, Lowe's was the primary of the #11 Ford driven by Brett Bodine for Junior Johnson Motorsports, and later, Brett's own team, Brett Bodine Racing (after Bodine bought the #11 team from Johnson).

Lowe's also sponsored Fernandez Racing in the Rolex Sports Car Series and later in the American Le Mans Series when the team switched championships.

Lowe's Canadian unit will start up operations in Ontario with up to five to six stores by the end of 2007 financial year and will be based in Toronto, Ontario, headquarters of Home Depot Canada.

The initial stores were projected to open in the second half of 2007, each creating up to 175 jobs. However, the first three stores only opened on December 10, 2007.^[4]. Each store represents an average investment of $20.5 million ($18.5 million USD).

A news release on Lowe's website stated that "we’re breaking ground on our first location in Hamilton, have identified additional locations in Brantford, South Brampton and Toronto and have another nine locations approved through our real estate committee process...” ^[5]

Lowe's will expand to Mexico beginning in 2009. An expected three to five stores will be built in Monterrey, Mexico's third-largest city. The new operations is expected to create up to 800 jobs, with each store representing an investment of $18-20 million USD.^[6]

Lowe's offers comprehensive benefits to its employees including 401k, employee stock purchase plans, medical coverage and disability benefits. Lowe's also offers all employees and their spouses or domestic partners (same or opposite sex) a 10% discount on store products. Lowe's has a culture of inclusion and anti-discrimination. This includes sexual orientation and gender identification.

Six company holidays are standard including New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. All holidays save Thanksgiving and Christmas are working holidays, with full-time employees receiving eight hours of holiday pay and part-time employees receiving four.

Full-time hourly employees are entitled to two weeks of vacation after one year of service, while salaried corporate employees with prior experience often receive two weeks of vacation immediately. Lowe's also offers a comprehensive service reward to long-term employees, such as additional vacation time and a series of gifts, ranging from a two-year pin to a thirty-year Rolex watch.

Lowe's offers a 401(k) plan is available after six months of employment. Employees are given a wide selection of mutual funds to invest in, as well as company stock. In addition, Lowe's contributes a baseline match to all employees following 180 days of service. Employees can contribute up to 50% of their paycheck, and the company will fully match the first 3%.

Lowe's markets itself internally and externally as a customer-focused organization in contrast to Home Depot, a contractor oriented organization. The marketing strategy between Lowe's and Home Depot is similar to the strategy between Target and Wal-Mart, with Lowe's stressing a softer and kinder image, appealing to women.

Lowe's was involved in a lawsuit, with ten former Lowe’s employees, in August of 2004. Their case focused on a pay practice known as "variable overtime." The practice has the effect of paying a decreasing overtime rate the more hours a person works in a week. The suit alleged that salaried managers were required to work between 48 and 50 hours per week but were improperly compensated for that time.^[7]

The variable rate overtime ended in the first quarter of 2006. The lawsuit itself resulted in an out of court settlement on September 22, 2006. The settlement itself was paid within the first two weeks of November 2007.^{[citation needed]}

• Lowes.com
• Lowes Employee Portal
• Lowe's Creative Ideas Magazine
• Lowe's Moving Center
• Lowe's Retire Rich 401k Details
• Business Week: A Sharper Edge for Lowe's
• Lowes stock chart performance
• Lowe's Canada
• Lowe's Kobalt Tools
• Lowe's Red Apron - Informational Research on Lowe's