Company Profile
The Home Depot
Company Overview
The Home Depot
We are the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer with
stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin
Islands, 10 Canadian provinces, Mexico and China
Company History
The Home Depot was founded in 1978 by Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank. Along with investment banker Ken Langone and merchandising guru Pat Farrah, the founders’ vision of one-stop shopping for the do-it-yourselfer came to fruition when they opened the first two Home Depot stores on June 22, 1979, in Atlanta, Georgia. The first stores, at around 60,000 square feet each, were cavernous warehouses that dwarfed the competition and stocked 25,000 SKUs, much more than the average hardware store at that time. Empty boxes piled high on the shelves gave the illusion of even more product.
From the start, associates were able to offer the best customer service in the industry, guiding customers through projects such as laying tile, changing a fill valve or handling a power tool. Not only did store associates undergo rigorous product knowledge training, but they also began offering clinics so customers could learn how to do it themselves. The Home Depot revolutionized the home improvement industry by bringing the know-how and the tools to the consumer and by saving them money.
According to Bernie and Arthur, the customer has a bill of rights at The Home Depot, and this entitles the customer to the right assortment, quantities and price, along with trained associates on the sales floor who want to take care of customers. Their philosophy of customer service – “whatever it takes” – means cultivating a relationship with customers rather than merely completing a transaction. As Bernie says in Built from Scratch, “At the end of the day, we’re in the people business.”
Notable Accomplishments / Recognition
Community Involvement by the Numbers
Since its founding in 2002, The Home Depot Foundation has contributed more than $90 million to nonprofit organizations and supported the development of more than 95,000 affordable, healthy homes.
2009 Accomplishments:
Total giving in cash and in-kind exceeded $74 million to more than 5,300 nonprofit organizations.
Funded and supported the building and preservation of 33,000 affordable homes.
Planted 169,000 trees through partnerships with the Arbor Day Foundation, the Alliance for Community Trees and local groups such as the New York Restoration Project.
Launched the 5-year, $30 million Partners in Sustainable Building program with Habitat for Humanity International, which built 1,000 homes to Energy Star® Plus or higher standards.
Launched the Sustainable Cities Institute [Links to: www.sustainablecitiesinstitute.org] to provide information, expertise and resources to city officials in order to catalyze their efforts to make communities more sustainable economically, socially and environmentally.
Expanded the Framing Hope program to more than 1,000 of The Home Depot’s retail stores.
Donated $37 million in product to 1,600 nonprofit organizations focused on building and maintaining affordable housing for working families and community shelters.
Diverted 12,500 tons of usable products from landfills and put the materials to good use in the community through donations to nonprofit organizations.
Built 66 KaBOOM! playgrounds across the United States.
Benefits
The Home Depot offers our associates the opportunity to choose from a variety of flexible benefit plans designed to meet individual and family needs.
Specific plans are available for part-time hourly, full-time hourly and salaried associates, and may cover eligible dependents, including same-sex domestic partners.
Benefit options include:
Health Insurance
The Home Depot offers associates the peace of mind that comes with comprehensive health insurance. Health insurance packages can include:
Medical
Dental
Vision
Life and Other Insurance
The Home Depot offers you and your family the protection you need in the event of death or disability. Insurance options can include:
Life Insurance
Disability Insurance
Accidental Death and Dismemberment (AD&D) Insurance
Long-term Care Insurance
Auto/Homeowners Insurance
Veterinary Pet Insurance
Financial
The Home Depot wants to help associates retain their earnings. We offer several programs that can help build financial security, including:
Health Savings Account
401(k)
Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP)
Direct Deposit and Credit Union
Time Off
Paid time off may be offered to The Home Depot associates in the following situations:
Vacation
Holidays
Personal/Sick Days
Leave of Absence (including military leave)
Jury Duty
Bereavement Days
Work/Life
Other benefits of working at The Home Depot include:
Tuition Reimbursement
Relocation Assistance
Matching Gift Program
Adoption Assistance
Legal Services Plan
Tuition Reimbursement
The Home Depot’s Tuition Reimbursement program encourages and supports associates who enroll in college, university and technical school courses in order to obtain an associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral or technical degree. Our program allows eligible associates to receive reimbursement for approved courses that are related to company business.