Lowe's 1997 Annual Report Download - page 7

Attuned
to Trends,
Lowe’s
Sells
Solutions
Millions of Americans know that they can buy flooring
at Lowe’s; now they can have it installed through Lowe’s,
too. They know Lowe’s has everything it takes to remodel
a bathroom; now we also have everything to decorate it,
right down to the soap dish. We sell nails by the pound, of
course; now we also sell them by the pallet. We have
always carried lumber; now we carry pre-
mium grade lumber at better prices. And,
sure, we have more than forty thousand
items in our stores; but we can also provide
hundreds of thousands of products to our
customers—and have them delivered to
their doorstep.
These are some of Lowe’s own “ home
improvements,” designed to satisfy the
current needs and desires of our customers.
In 1997 we sharpened our customer focus—
and never has it been more important.
There’s a world of options out there for
anyone with money to spend on home
improvement projects. Consumers can shop
at hardware stores, appliance dealers, lumber yards, carpet
stores, and garden centers, not to mention catalog shop-
ping and the Internet. Surrounded by alternatives, Lowe’s
has to seize every opportunity to stand out. We have to
give consumers a reason to become Lowe’s customers, and
give our customers a reason to keep coming back.
The improvements we have made—and continue to
make—are a direct response to demographic shifts that
were set in motion years ago and that will continue to
influence our economy well into the next century. With
sensitive monitoring, these shifts yield the kind of informa-
tion we can use to competitive advantage.
Of course, the big demographic story is that Baby
Boomers are aging. “ As they move to the next phase of
life, from parent and provider to retiree, they represent
enormous opportunities,” says Dale Pond, Senior VP of
Marketing.
“ The Boomers have more money and less time than
any previous generation. As they hit fifty, they’re finishing
raising their kids and paying for college; even mortgage
payments are becoming less of a budget factor. So we’ll
see them spending more of their resources on entertain-
ment, travel, and health—and investing for retirement.
“ They’ll have less inclination to undertake do-it-your-
self projects around home,” Dale says. “ They don’t have to
do the work themselves in order to save money; with age,
Baby Boomers such as this
homeowner at the Gulf
Harbour Yacht & Country
Club in Ft. Myers, Florida
increasingly call on the
expertise of Lowe’s commer-
cial business customers to
help with home improvement
projects.
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