On Wednesday, August 24, 2016 at 3:02:37 PM UTC-4, trader_4 wrote:
On Wednesday, August 24, 2016 at 2:48:00 PM UTC-4, DerbyDad03 wrote:
On Tuesday, August 23, 2016 at 10:11:23 AM UTC-4, trader_4 wrote:
Lowes opened their Lowes Express here in NJ as an experiment about 4 or 5 years ago. They just closed it. It was a smaller, neighborhood version
of Lowes, similar to a big hardware store. It went into what used to be
a good size supermarket. They had paint, common lumber, electrical
stuff, garden supplies, barbecues, limited appliances, etc. Sadly it
didn't do enough business. I was always surprised at how few people
there were in it. Basically one checkout open and hardly anyone ahead
of you there. So, I guess they won't be opening any more of them.
Unfortunate because it was convenient and you could also get stuff
shipped for store pickup to there, return stuff from other Lowes, etc.

Do you agree with Ms. Kavtaradze that the selection of actual hardware
items was limited?

http://www.northjersey.com/news/busi...ears-1.1647599

IDK, there was a reasonable amount of typical hardware stuff. For
example, they had a good assortment of screws and fasteners, including
the section with the gray slide out drawers with specialty fasteners and
individual metric bolts, nuts etc. They had PVC plumbing fittings for
example, toilet parts. They had common tools. They didn't have a
full garden center, but they did have fetilizer, pesticides, seed, that
kind of stuff.

I think she's right though that they did waste floor space on appliances.
It made no sense to me, because it was still a very limited selection.
If someone is going to buy a fridge or dishwasher, why would they
but it somewhere where you can only see a limited selection? The
real Lowes stores are about 12 miles away north or south. Plus HD
about the same distance. I thought maybe they figured that shore
rental property people and such might want a basic one, but I think
even they like to go somewhere where they can find a cheap one from
a bigger selection, etc. I think they also were selling kitchen
cabinets, same thing there, I'd just go to the real store, as driving
isn't an issue when it comes to that kind of purchase. I went to
this Express for paint, bolts, drywall compound, that kind of thing.
With something like lighting they had more than what you;d find in
the local hardware store, (which is close to zero), but nowhwere
near the selection of the full Lowes. If I needed a basic fixture
for a basement or some other common electrical item, eg a 3 way
switch, Romex, or a basic recessed LED, I'd go there. But if I
needed a fashionable fixture or a panel, then I go to the big store,
because of the choices for the former, and they didn't have the
latter at the Express.

I thought I read someplace that the store was set up sort of in response
to Sandy. If that's the case, then maybe "the basics" were good enough
for someone just trying to get their house back together ASAP.

Dunno...just schpeculatin'