How The Home Depot Rental plans to open 50 new centers in 2022
The Home Depot Rental has spent the past 25 years offering pro-quality tools, trucks, and large equipment for almost every job. While learnings and improvement have been made each year as the company learns and evolves, the past 12 months have been a unique milestone with the rollout of new technologies, rental centers and fleet options. We, like many of you, felt like the world turned upside down in 2020. But this shift also enabled us to pause and adjust to the needs of our customers while reasserting our company’s values in an ever-changing landscape. While there was much excitement over our new offerings, we also continued to closely analyze trends and intensifying market demand to identify how to best serve the rental community. We’re taking what we’ve learned over the past two years to inform our multi-year rental expansion program, kicking off in 2022 with the opening of 50 new Rental Centers across the country.
In 2021, we opened two Rental Operations Facilities in Houston and Nashville focused on enabling The Home Depot Rental to dispatch larger-class equipment more efficiently to jobsites from a centralized location. Rental Operations Facilities have become even more important as the needs of Pro customers have grown. In anticipation of a need for large equipment rental beyond the construction industry, we opened Rental Operations Facilities in New Orleans and Los Angeles to also serve as a disaster response resource. Hurricanes, tornados and earthquakes can devastate a community and accessible rental solutions can aid in a swift recovery response. Our hope is to continue identifying ways our business can serve the community, expanding our footprint outside of the construction realm.
In addition to being prepared for intense weather, we also expanded on the needs of our Pro and DIY customers and created a resource to help make everyday life easier: Rent Online Pickup In Store, which offers the convenience of online reservations for tools and vehicles in the Rental Centers. Accelerated demand has yielded the need for new Rental Centers in new markets. Our rental solutions footprint has never been stronger, and we’re excited to continue rolling out Rental Operations Facilities and Rent Online Pickup In Store capabilities across the country.
The need for a strong equipment rental partner has been underscored by the success of the housing market of the past 18 months. Home inventory is near record lows and turnover is strong, and the influx of homebuying means an influx of home renovating. The rental industry is reaching new customers endeavoring their own DIY projects and having the option to rent tools for these projects has been a successful area of growth over the past year. The Home Depot Rental saw an all-time high demand for outdoor tool rentals last spring, and we’re anticipating an equally hungry market this year. With the option to rent landscaping products from tillers to skid steers, we are empowering homeowners and professional landscapers alike with the tools to create a dreamy backyard oasis.
With an ever-expanding Rental Center offering, we are equipping Pros with best-in-class products. 2021 saw more work for contractors across all segments. More work means more large equipment, tools, trucks and trailers will be necessary, and The Home Depot Rental is committed to offering top of the line products. Pros can see exciting new offerings in our Rental Centers including a wide variety of cordless tools and gas-powered tools from brand partners like Milwaukee, Makita and Hilti.
Renting removes the time and cost commitment that comes with buying and maintaining new tools, and offers Pros the flexibility to rent for hours, days or, even weeks – offering Pros the freedom to grow their businesses at their own pace.
The Home Depot Rental has experienced many notable moments in our 25-year history, but 2021 will certainly be a year to remember. We’ve learned from the rollercoaster ride of 2020 and implemented measures to better prepare for the twists and turns. Ultimately, the ride was worth it, and we are excited to bring everything we’ve learned into this new year.
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Richard Porter, vice president of rental, repair, RLCs & services, The Home Depot) has served as vice president of The Home Depot Rental since 2017. He also leads The Home Depot’s reverse logistics, repairs and equipment services businesses. Richard has a passion for optimization and leveraging technology to deliver an industry-leading customer experience. Richard and his family live in Atlanta, Ga.