Goodbye, Home Depot

[Setec Astronomy]

I just went to the Lowes that opened up near me, and even though it`s a little farther away, I don`t think I will bother going to Home Depot anymore. Here in NJ, pre-Home Depot there was Rickel`s and Channel Lumber. Rickel`s was a place that you never went to to buy one thing, because the checkout lines were endless. Channel was better in that respect, but not as good in selection. Neither had much in the way of knowledgable staff. Both were quickly put out of business by Home Depot, which had, in one store, 25 checkout lanes, for no waiting, huge selection, knowledgeable and helpful staff, and good prices. I think another reason people liked Home Depot is that it was a "warehouse store" and people felt they had to be getting a good deal in that kind of place.



Once the competition was gone, HD deteriorated into the horrible experience it is today. The store with the 25 checkout lanes still has lanes numbered up to #25, except the first 15 or so are gone (can you believe that?!), and they usually have only one open, except for the wonderfully efficient :rolleyes: self-checkout lanes (whatever beancounter thought this up should be shot, if they think that one "associate" trying to help out 4 snafu`d customers is any better than having more cashiers, especially when at least 1 of the 4 self-checkouts is usually broken). The shelves are poorly stocked, messed up, and the staff is generally clueless. Pricing is now not any better than anywhere else. Did I mention that "warehouse" stores are filthy and poorly lit?



Anyway, Lowes is clean, and every "associate" we passed said hello--at HD you can`t even get the help to talk to you when you want them to! Looked like they had plenty of cashiers, and PC`s for $100! So it`s my new go-to home supply store, until/unless they turn to crap.

[twitch]

nearly the same thing happened here. Home Depot was about the only place to go then Lowe`s opened down the street.



It was like a whole new world. The people were eager to help and it felt like you were shopping in a store not a warehouse. Well that didn`t last long. It still has the "store" feeling but the help dropped off not long after the store opened and now it`s a toss up of where the best service will be. Home Depot still seems to stay more crowded than Lowes so I still go Lowes.



I`d be curious to find out if Lowes` practice is to open with a bang by supplying plenty of help then let people go once they have raked in some of the public.





Time will tell.

[Sarcazmo]

I work @ Home Depot (But only for another two weeks! Hallelujah!) and know how you feel. It`s a crappy place to work, and not that great a place to shop.



My only gripe with Lowes is that around here, they have even fewer employees than HD.

[Setec Astronomy]

I`d be curious to find out if Lowes` practice is to open with a bang by supplying plenty of help then let people go once they have raked in some of the public.





Well, I`m not sure if it`s intentional, really. If you put all the competition out of business, and you`re the only game in town, then your sales aren`t affected too much by poor service. It may just be that management doesn`t really notice the customer dissatisfaction when the sales don`t drop. If the sales dropped, they would say "what`s going on? why? oh, that store across town has better service, we need to hire some more/good people". Then again, the way a lot of these companies are run, it wouldn`t surprise me if the SOP was to start strong to suck in the customers, and then have a planned "degradation" to reduce the operating costs.

[az57chevy]

ditto for AZ. I only go for something Lowe`s doesn`t carry.

[theeloved1]

They have been literally across the street from each other for as long as I can remember around here. They are a complete toss up, and are equally crappy.



Although, the other day I was in Lowes (because its on my side of the street ;) ) looking for some stuff to add on another breaker box....had a couple questions and the guy that helped me was a licensed electrical inspector for the city and worked there part time. Needless to say, he was knowledgeable.

[BigAl3]

hmm.... i still have a $50 gift certificate to home depot and plan on using it on the ridgid wd4050 vac and that`s about it. can`t say i`m a regular shopper there anyway...

[1 Clean WS6]

The Home Depot here in Marietta by my home is about 3 years old so it is relatively new. It`s clean, well stocked and the employees for the most part are very nice (that could be the southern hospitality default though). That said...they do have the same eighty billion checkout lanes with only two cashiers and four self serve lanes (one of which is always broken). Maybe that MO is in the Home Depot manual??



One thing I can tear into them about is their remodeling department. My wife and I went through them when we had new kitchen cabinets and countertops installed. The subcontractor they had come out to do the work was AWESOME...they on the other hand left something to be desired. Once I stroked my name on the check I was the one who constantly had to call them, make appointments and schedule things. If I didn`t call...I wouldn`t hear a thing. On more than one occassion I had to physically go down to the store in order to get a response since my phone calls did not get returned.



Lesson learned...I will never use any of Home Depot`s "we`ll install it too" services ever again.

[Setec Astronomy]

...they do have the same eighty billion checkout lanes with only two cashiers and four self serve lanes (one of which is always broken). Maybe that MO is in the Home Depot manual??





Maybe this didn`t come thru in my original post, but one of my local HD`s had 25 checkout lanes originally, but when they took out about 15 of them to make room for the seasonal goods, they left the remaining 10...starting with #16 and going thru #25...I can only presume that this is some sort of psychological brainwashing they use on the customers who are on line at one of the (as you said) maximum of two open registers, to make them think there are more lanes...I think the brain washing is designed to work in combination with the constant alarms going off from the self-serve lanes and the exit security. Once, I saw a guy who had only one small item that he was holding, get so frustrated from waiting on the endless lines, that he just stepped out of line and walked out with it, setting off the alarm...no one even batted an eye or noticed...and that`s WITH the nonsense security guy at the door circling the date on your receipt.

[Sarcazmo]

I think most warehouse stores do open with a bang as they`re trying to steal their competitors market shares. HOnestly the Lowes and HD`s here are pretty darn similar. Once things settle I wouldn`t be surpriesd to see Lowe`s go downhill as well.



With that said, I don`t really expect super awesome customer service anymore, that`s what Google is for. (How sad is that?!)

[MorBid]

We have had both here for a long time in Rochester, but they usually aren`t right next to each other. That said I do find the Lowes stores to be more cleaner and have more check-out lines open.



Home Depot up here has gone mostly Contractor Sales. I think the TownHome I`m renting now was built from material entirely purchased from HD as everytime I go there I see the inside of my house. Right down to the faucets and washing machines.

[BobD]

We have a Lowes two seconds from my house and two Home Depots about 10 minutes away. I always see them both booming. I don`t think either one is going anywhere. I work with a like of contractors and they actually complain about Lowes a lot. To me it seems Lowes is more Do-It Yourselfer friendlt and Home Depot is more Contractor friendly.

[theeloved1]

We have a Lowes two seconds from my house and two Home Depots about 10 minutes away. I always see them both booming. I don`t think either one is going anywhere.





Its definately big business...I live on the far east county line of city with 150,000 people....within 5 minutes of me there is a Menards, Lowes, and Home Depot directly across the street. 10 minutes directly North there is another Menards and another Home Depot that are separated by only a Petco and a restaurant. ALL of which seemed to be pretty packed at any given time.



For those that don`t live up here...Menards is a chain of about 200 stores spread across 10 states in the upper-midwest. Every bit as big as a Lowes or HD, plus they have a full on lumber yard.

[Pats300zx]

I like Lowes so much better than HD. The sales staff seems more friendly. Its easier to move around the store because the aisles seem bigger. I have also found the prices to be better.

[kompressornsc]

Menard`s is the place, baby! Especailly if you`re renovating or working on an older house. Probably don`t have quite the tool selection, but good prices, good selection on other things, and prople are fairly helpful-or will find someone who is.



And anyone ever notice that HD tends to hire young, cute checkout girls? Go to a Lowe`s and HD that are across the street from each other and I can guarantee that HD has better looking checkers (those who have not been replaced by the UScan).