Home Depot 2008 Annual Report Download - page 3

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We also rolled out new merchandising tools allowing our merchants to better plan
and assort our products. These tools helped us drive better inventory productivity
and provided better markdown control, particularly for our seasonal categories.
On the international front, our stores in Mexico continued their strong performance,
ending the year with double digit positive comps. We also took a major step in
transforming our information technology application footprint by converting our
Canadian business to a new enterprise resource planning platform. The rest of the
business will benefit from the lessons learned from the Canadian effort.
None of these activities would be possible without outstanding associates. Our
associates carry our service culture to our customers every day. For 2008, we issued
success sharing checks in excess of $88 million to our hourly associates. This is a
Company record, and it is a source of pride that we can take care of associates in
economically difficult times like these. Furthermore, associates under the officer
level will receive performance based merit increases and our 401(k) matching
program remains intact. Taking care of our associates is an important part of taking
care of our customers.
We are expecting another challenging year in 2009. Across the business, we are
making the adjustments necessary to respond to the economic environment. We are
carefully controlling our discretionary spending, scrutinizing every dollar of capital,
and — most importantly — intensifying our focus on our customers.
Our strategy is simple and straightforward: We are passionate about customer
service. We are — and must continue to be — the number one authority on products
in the home improvement market. And we will drive shareholder return through
disciplined capital allocation.
Above all, we are a values-based business. The Home Depot was founded in 1979
when the U.S. was in the middle of a recession. Our values — taking care of our
customers and taking care of our associates — speak even more powerfully in
difficult times.
I hope as you spend time in our stores you will notice our continuing improvement.
Francis S. Blake
Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
April 2, 2009