Home Depot 2008 Annual Report Download - page 8

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Services. Our stores offer a variety of installation services. These services target D-I-F-M customers who select and
purchase products and installation of those products from us. These installation programs include products such as
carpeting, flooring, cabinets, countertops and water heaters. In addition, we provide professional installation of a number
of products sold through our in-home sales programs, such as generators and furnace and central air systems.
Store Growth
United States. At the end of fiscal 2008, we were operating 1,971 The Home Depot stores in the U.S., including the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the territories of the U.S. Virgin Islands and Guam. During fiscal 2008, we opened 41
new The Home Depot stores, including five relocations, in the U.S.
Canada. At the end of fiscal 2008, we were operating 176 The Home Depot stores in ten Canadian provinces. Of these
stores, 12 were opened during fiscal 2008, including one relocation.
Mexico. At the end of fiscal 2008, we were operating 74 The Home Depot stores in Mexico. Of these stores, nine were
opened during fiscal 2008.
China. At the end of fiscal 2008, we were operating 12 The Home Depot stores in six Chinese cities.
Certain financial information about our operations outside of the U.S. is reported in Note 1 to the Consolidated Financial
Statements.
Store Support Services
Information Technologies. During fiscal 2008, we continued to make information technology investments to better
support our customers and provide an improved overall shopping environment and experience. We invested in our supply
chain and merchandising tools to improve inventory management capabilities and streamline our operations.
We completed the deployment of a new enterprise resource planning (“ERP”) system to our Canadian division, which
includes all stores and distribution centers. We will assess the return on investment and performance of the system in the
fiscal year ended January 31, 2010 (“fiscal 2009”) as we evaluate alternatives for our U.S. application footprint.
With regard to our supply chain, we implemented a new warehouse management system to support the U.S. and Canadian
stores, continued implementation of a new transportation management system, completed a technology refresh at our
distribution centers, and implemented improvements to our Central Automated Replenishment system.
We made improvements to the tools utilized in merchandising systems in the areas of assortment management,
forecasting, and replenishment.
With our continued focus on the stores, we provided technology improvements designed to help store associates perform
their tasks and improve customer service. We equipped 1,100 stores with new computers, registers and printers, and 920
stores received new paint dispensers.
Credit Services. We offer six credit programs through third-party credit providers to professional, D-I-Y and D-I-F-M
customers. In fiscal 2008, approximately 3.2 million new The Home Depot credit accounts were opened, and the total
number of The Home Depot active account holders was approximately 12.5 million. Proprietary credit card sales
accounted for approximately 28% of store sales in fiscal 2008. In fiscal 2008, Home Depot re-negotiated and extended the
term of the primary contracts governing the programs. The new contract with Citibank established a ceiling for the cost of
credit for the program while retaining the ability for portfolio performance improvements to lower the cost of credit.
Logistics. Our logistics programs are designed to ensure product availability for customers, effective use of our
investment in inventory and low total supply chain costs. At the end of fiscal 2008, we operated 30 lumber distribution
centers, 45 conventional distribution centers and five transit facilities, all located in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
Additionally in 2008, we opened four new Rapid Deployment Centers (“RDC”) in the U.S., bringing our total number of
RDCs to five. We now serve approximately 25% of our U.S. stores from RDCs. RDCs allow for aggregation of store
product needs to a single purchase order, and then rapid allocation and deployment of inventory to individual stores upon
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