Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse
...y in the DIY market? What position does Lowe’s occupy? Home Depot occupies the first position and is the market leader in the DIY market. Lowe’s is a market challenger attempting to close the gap between them and Home Depot. 4. What is Lowe’s central marketing problem? Lowe’s is currently operating in only one of the top 25 urban cities where 50 percent of DIY sales occur. Its central problem is that it is attempting to enter the same markets and competing directly with Home Depot in markets that Home Depot already serves. So they have to come in and fight to take market share away from the leader. 5. What marketing and competitive strategy recommendations would you make to Lowe’s? Since it does not appear that Lowe’s has any real sustainable competitive advantage over Home Depot, I recommend that they do not attempt to topple Home Depot, but work for a larger share of the market. I would advise that Lowe’s make an indirect attack on Home Depot’s weaknesses or search for gaps in their market coverage. I think that targeting women as well as men will help them to increase their market share. Also I would recommend that they capitalize on the fact that Home Depot does not carry such items as washers, dryers, televisions and other appliances. One way Lowe’s can capitalize on the “one stop shopping” theme is to use promotions that give buyers certain percentages off of appliances with home improvement purchases. Also, since customer’s chief complaints of the large home-improvement centers revolve around customer service, I feel that they should strive to excel in these areas. This includes obtaining qualified help and keeping checkout lines short. Target Market – Do-it yourselfer’s and contractor segments, along with the cu...