Advance Auto Parts 2008 Annual Report Download - page 17

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3
AAP Stores
Store Overview. Our stores generally are located in freestanding buildings in areas with high vehicle traffic
counts, good visibility and easy access to major roadways. We believe that our stores exhibit a customer-friendly
format with the majority of our stores featuring an updated exterior and interior, bright lighting, and a well-designed
and easily navigated floor plan. The average size of our stores is 7,400 square feet with the size of our typical new
stores approximating 6,000 to 7,000 square feet. Our stores generally are open from 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. six days a
week and 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. on Sundays and most holidays to meet the needs of our DIY and Commercial
customers. We offer extended hours in a limited number of our stores, including 24 hours per day in certain stores.
Our stores carry a standard product offering of approximately 16,000 stock keeping units, or SKUs. Certain
stores carry slightly more SKUs within centralized market locations where there is demand for a more customized
assortment of merchandise. Additionally, some of our stores carry an additional customized assortment of 10,000
SKUs for same-day or next-day delivery to other select stores within the respective service area. The standard SKU
offering within each of our stores is replenished from one of our eight distribution centers once per week on average.
We also utilize a network of Parts Delivered Quickly, or PDQ®, facilities and one Master PDQ® facility to
ensure our stores have the right product at the right time for our customers’ needs. Our PDQ® and Master PDQ®
network of facilities provide our customers with an additional assortment of approximately 64,000 less common
SKUs on a same-day or overnight basis. Lastly, our customers have access to over 280,000 SKUs by ordering
directly from one of our vendors for delivery to a particular store or other destination as chosen by the customer.
Store team members utilize our proprietary point-of-sale, or POS, system, including a fully integrated electronic
parts catalog to identify and suggest the appropriate quality and price options for the SKUs we carry, as well as the
related products, tools or additional information that is required by our customers to complete their automotive
repair projects properly and safely. We strive to be the leader in the automotive aftermarket industry in serving our
customers by providing quality products at the right price and backed by a solid warranty and outstanding customer
service. We offer many of the products in our stores at a good, better or best recommendation differentiated by price
and quality.
The products offered in our stores include the following:
Filters Alternators Transmissions Windshield Wipers
Radiators Batteries Clutches Windshield Washer Fluid
Brake Pads Shock Absorbers Electronic Ignition Components Floor Mats
Belts and Hoses Struts Engines Steering Wheel Covers
Radiator Hoses Suspension Parts Oil and Transmission Fluid Lighting
Starters Spark Plugs Antifreeze Wash and Waxes
We also provide a variety of services free of charge to our customers including:
Battery installation “How-To” Project Brochures Electrical system testing
Wiper installation “How-To” Video Clinics Oil and battery recycling
Our retail stores are 100% company operated and are divided into three geographic areas. Each geographic area
is managed by a senior vice president, who is supported by seven regional vice presidents. District managers report
to the regional vice presidents and have direct responsibility for store operations in a specific district, which
typically consists on average of 14 stores. Depending on store size and sales volume, each store is staffed by 8 to 16
team members under the leadership of a general manager. We offer training to our employees, who we refer to as
Team Members. Team Member training includes formal classroom workshops, online seminars and certification by
the National Institute for Automotive Service Excellence, or ASE, which is broadly recognized for training
certification in the automotive industry. We also continue to increase the number of bilingual team members in our
stores to better serve an increasingly diverse customer base.