Lowe’s Companies, Inc. (LOW) (Group 2)

Headquartered in Mooresville, North Carolina, Lowe’s is among Fortune’s top 50 companies and is the second largest home improvement store in the world, trailing only Atlanta, Georgia-based Home Depot. Lowe’s operates 2,365 stores with all Lowe’s stores being located in the USA, Canada, and Mexico. The firm serves 17 million customers weekly in over 213 million square feet of retail space. Lowe’s has an agreement, as a one-third owner, with Australian Woolworths Limited to develop a Lowe’s themed store in Australia.

Lowe’s stores offer appliances, lawn and garden, lumber, plumbing, electrical, power tools, flooring, and much more for home repair and construction. Lowe’s principle goal is “to execute better than our competitors, and make the process of home improvement as seamless and simple as possible for customers.” Lowe’s customers are primarily homeowners, renters, homebuilders, and commercial construction firms. Lowe’s employs over 290,000 people with 190,000 being fulltime, all of whom are led by CEO Robert Niblock.

Situation Analysis

• The Environment – PESTLE Analysis

• 1. Political environment

  2. Economic environment

  3. Social environment

  4. Technological environment

  5. Legal/Regulatory environment

  6. Environmental environment

• The Industry – Porter’s Five Forces Analysis

• 1. Bargaining power of suppliers

  2. Threat of new entrant

  3. Rivalry among existing competitors

  4. Bargaining power of competitors

  5. Threat of substitutes

• The Firm

• 1. What is the mission and vision of the firm?

  2. What are the strengths of the firm?

  3. What is the firm’s financial condition?

  4. What are the constraints and weaknesses of the firm (i.e. financial condition, organizational conflict)?

  5. What is the management philosophy?

  6. What does the organizational structure tell you about how decisions are made?

• The Product

• 1. What good and/or service does the organization offer?

  2. What consumer need does the product solve?

  3. What promotional mix, channels of distribution, and pricing strategies are being used by the organization?

  4. What competitive advantage does the marketing strategy offer?

SWOT Analysis

• Strengths

  • Identify strengths of the organization and answer the following questions:

    • How does this strength affect the operations of the organization?

    • How does this strength assist the company in meeting the needs of its target market(s)?

• Weaknesses

  • Identify weaknesses of the organization and answer the following questions:

    • How does this weakness affect the operations of the organization?

    • How does knowledge of this weakness assist the organization in meeting the needs of its target market(s)?

• Opportunities

  • Identify opportunities in the industry (and/or external environment) and answer the following questions:

    • How is this opportunity related to serving the needs of our target market?

    • What actions must the organization take to capitalize on this opportunity?

• Threats

  • Identify threats in the industry (and/or external environment) and answer the following questions:

    • How is this threat related to serving the needs of our target market?

    • What actions must the organization take to prevent this threat from limiting the capabilities of the organization?

Problem Statement

• What is the primary problem in the case? Secondary problems? What are the ramifications of these problems in the long run? Short run? Include quantitative and qualitative analysis in your response.

Strategic Plan

• Based on the problem identified, develop a 5-year strategic plan for the company. This plan should include:

1.Clear vision, mission statement and core values

2.SMART objectives to solve the problem

3.Corresponding strategies for the objectives identified

4.Implementation plan

5.Key Performance Indicators to monitor progress

SAMPLE ASSIGNMENT

Sample-2