Home Depot Plows HD Supply Proceeds Back Into Business - Modern Distribution Management

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Home Depot Plows HD Supply Proceeds Back Into Business

With home sales down, and with that, sales of home improvement materials, Home Depot's timing in reinvesting the money made in part by selling off HD Supply may be raising some eyebrows. CEO Frank Blake spoke with The Wall Street Journal about the big decisions he has made and why it was important that they be made now.
 
Blake told the paper that the decision to invest more than $3 billion in company improvements over the next two years was not a difficult one to make. There's absolutely a benefit in making changes during a downturn,"he said. "It's easier for everyone to understand the need for the change when things are tougher and the risks are lower."
 
Blake has already used proceeds from the HD Supply sale to implement a new centralized distribution system. ...
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With home sales down, and with that, sales of home improvement materials, Home Depot’s timing in reinvesting the money made in part by selling off HD Supply may be raising some eyebrows. CEO Frank Blake spoke with The Wall Street Journal about the big decisions he has made and why it was important that they be made now.
 
Blake told the paper that the decision to invest more than $3 billion in company improvements over the next two years was not a difficult one to make. There’s absolutely a benefit in making changes during a downturn,”he said. “It’s easier for everyone to understand the need for the change when things are tougher and the risks are lower.”
 
Blake has already used proceeds from the HD Supply sale to implement a new centralized distribution system. (Related MDM Article: Home Depot’s New DC Strategy) He’s planning to hire more skilled tradesmen to help customers and provide better training to current staff.
 
Blake told the WSJ that it is easy to give into fears during a slowdown and that he does not want Home Depot to lose its sense of direction as the economy grows tough. To counteract that fear and some of the effects of the domestic slowdown, Home Depot is looking to continue expansion into foreign markets rather than trying to insert more stores into an already saturated U.S. market.
 
Read the full article from The Wall Street Journal here: Home Depot Chief Renovates.(Subscription required.)

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