Home Centers

Home Depot will be shifting health coverage for roughly 20,000 part-time workers, who will qualify to seek plans on the new public marketplace exchanges under the Affordable Care Act, according to mutliple media reports.

The part-timers were previously covered under a limited liability medical plan that provided coverage of up to $20,000. Companies will be unable to offer these plans after Dec. 31. Enrollment for government-subsidized healthcare begins Oct. 1.

Home Depot is piloting a program in the Las Vegas area that allows homeowners and contractors to obtain official permits through in-store kiosks, according to an article in the Las Vegas Review Journal.

Home Depot’s sales to pros outpaced sales to DIYers, again.

Animal lovers and shopping mall owners are waging a stealth battle over a prairie dog colony next to a Home Depot store in Hutchinson, Kan. According to an article in the Hutch News, the colony of burrowing rodents, which has existed next to the store for years, recently began expanding into open land south of the mall. So the property management has been placing sandbags on top of the new holes for several weeks. 

Hurricanes and storms helped sales, but dampened gross margins in third quarter. 

Lowe’s second-quarter financial report was a disappointment to the company’s executives, who made no excuses for the retailer’s poor showing. Earnings were down slightly, revenues grew by only 1.3%, and comp-store sales were essentially flat. “Even after taking into account the challenges of the macro-environment, we are still not pleased with our performance this year,” said chairman and CEO Robert Niblock, speaking at an analysts’ conference call on Aug. 15.

Mooresville, N.C.-based Lowe’s reported sales of $14.5 billion in the second quarter ended July 29, up 1.3% from the same period a year ago.

Comparable-store sales increased 0.3% in the second quarter. The company posted earnings for the quarter of $830 million, down just slightly from $832 million in the same quarter last year.

Lowe's is making it easier for in-store shoppers to find exactly what they're looking for.