To see the ripple effect caused by the bust in the housing market, you need look no farther than what has happened to Lowe’s, the nation’s second-largest home improvement retailer.
In mid-May, The Wall Street Journal reported that the company’s first-quarter profit dropped a precipitous 18 percent, “hurt by the declining housing market and a spate of other economic worries that cut into consumers’ discretionary spending.”
Lowe’s told the Journal that it is “taking a closer look at its new-store expansion by either postponing some planned openings or walking away from some potential store prospects after some new stores missed the company’s internal projections.”
But company spokesperson Maureen Rich told The Chronicle that won’t affect the progress of the 170,000-square-foot store now going up in the Village of Chester. “Construction of the new Lowe’s store in Chester is progressing well, and we expect to open in the third quarter of 2008,” Rich wrote in an e-mailed message. “During Lowe’s recent earnings announcement, we reiterated plans to open 120 stores in 2008 and described plans to postpone some new store openings in markets experiencing more difficult economic conditions, such as in Florida and California. Lowe’s has made no such announcement regarding the Chester location.
“Our goal is always to build the best store on the best site for our customers, so we can continue to deliver the outstanding customer service that shoppers have come to expect from Lowe’s. We look forward to joining the Chester community!”
Logo from Lowe’s.
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