Industry News

Today, home improvement retailer Lowe’s announced its first quarter sales and earnings in fiscal 2016. The results brought increases in both sales and comparable store sales for Lowe’s, which follows the announcement of similar better-than-expected earnings from rival Home Depot yesterday. …

The Home Depot’s overall and comparable U.S. store sales were up in the first quarter, boosting the company’s expectations for sales growth for all of 2016. The numbers reflect “our stronger than expected start to the year,” Craig Menear, CEO, president and …

Sears has big plans for some small stores. If a pilot program goes well, then Sears Holdings Corp. will add a store format that is much smaller than its stores have been in the past, according to an article from …

Walmart is suing Visa, saying the credit card company is not letting it require customers to use PINs rather than signatures to secure purchases made with chip-embedded debit cards. The lawsuit “could stoke the continuing debate about how to balance security and convenience …

Government agencies have granted Lowe’s the final approvals needed for the retailer to buy Canadian home improvement retailer and distributor RONA Inc. in a deal expected to close May 20. Lowe’s needed two final approvals to move forward, and the company announced May 13 …

J.C. Penney is scaling up its home products business this year, and venturing back into appliance sales at 500 stores after a decades-long hiatus. The changes are coming after a successful appliance pilot program in three markets and under the leadership of CEO Marvin …

Have you thought about how you will attract the interest and spending of customers shopping for Father’s Day gifts? In 2015, consumers spent $13 billion on gifts for dads, according to a National Retail Federation survey. That spending is significantly less than what shoppers …

The 2016 National Hardware Show® offered a busy three days crammed with educational seminars, new products, awards ceremonies and networking opportunities. The event, which is the largest gathering of independent home improvement retailers in the world, was May 4-6 in …