Home Depot Testing Car Aftermarket Products

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Home Depot Auto Department

Home Depot is now testing car aftermarket products in 50 stores and, separately, it is selling backup cameras, radar detectors and portable GPS devices from its web site.

From what we can gather, the in-store trial includes only basic automotive products such as car batteries, windshield wipers and motor oil.   The departments are about 500 square feet.

Home Depot did not respond to our request for information about expanding aftermarket electronics like backup cameras beyond the web site and into the test stores. We also asked if car stereo might be in the mix for the future, but did not receive a response.

You can see the aftermarket products on the web site here:

The word about the test departments began spreading a week ago, when Carol Tomé, the Chief Financial Officer for Atlanta-based Home Depot said that a “Do It Yourself” Automotive pilot program was now in 50 stores.

Speaking before the Rotary Club of Atlanta she said, “We really like what we are seeing.” She added these test department “make lots of money,” wrote the Atlanta Business Chronicle.

Tomé said the expansion into DIY automotive makes sense since many of the store’s customers are people who are good with their hands and work on their own cars.

But Home Depot hasn’t been rushing the trial. It actually began in 2006 in 10 stores.

The chain operates 2,264 stores in the U.S, has nearly 400,000 employees, and generates $80 billion in revenue.

Source: Atlanta Business Chronicle

Photo: test department in Orange, CT Home Depot store

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1 Comment

  1. HD and companies like that do just enough damage to additional markets to hurt the local and smaller type business. why don’t they stay in home improvement ,and do it well, instead of cherry picking markets. Also the manufacturers of automotive products should show some loyalty to their existing distribution. But they won’t and I hope it comes to bite them in the a_ _
    that’s why the 12v market is in the condition it is in. Manufacturers should spend their time working, educating , helping their distributors, not sell direct to dealers. the only ones making money are the overseas companies, their really helping our economy. I hope you don’t believe that.

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