A company case study on Home Depot

2. Click on
the
ORANGE
sign to
the left to
go inside.

3. Click on
this for the To learn
history of about our
Click on this so
Home you can be impact on Lastly, this can
tell you how
Depot ! informed on the Georgia,
our products
business risks click on used Georgia’s
taken to make this! transportation
Home Depot
systems to reach
possible!
all of our
customers!

5. Right after Blank and Marcus were abruptly fired from Handy Dan, they were quick to come up with a comeback scheme.
Their plans were big and innovative…they wanted their company to be the best of the best! With no source of income, they bega n
to work out ways to jumpstart Home Depot. By buying the first two stores in Atlanta, they were being very desperate and layin g
themselves and their investment of money out on the line. The purchase of the large-area warehouses and products to fill them
proved to be very expensive and a cause contributing to making their supply of money tight. On the first day in business, not hing
seemed promising, and it seemed as if maybe their investment had gone to waste and their money down the drain. Even more
disturbing, the marked down prices weren’t convincing people, not even when Marcus and Blank gave a group of kids a roll of s ingle
dollar bills hoping to spark an interest.
The extreme lowness of the price of the products could have been a major downfall if consumers weren’t interested in
buying. With uninterested people, the company would be brought down in the blink of an eye. This pitfall would have been
triggered if the amount of money used to buy the products to sell wasn’t reimbursed with some sort of profit. If no profit wa s
made, then more products wouldn’t be purchased and the company would have ended up being an entrepreneurial failure on Blank
and Marcus’ names. After all, a company isn’t successful until it can meet the needs of every customer.
Another shortcoming could have been their location. If Home Depot wouldn’t have been able to station its first stores in
Atlanta, it might have never flourished into its modern day status. In reality, location is almost as important as the business itself.
The location of a business must be able to catch the eye of the citizens living in one area in order to link its business to other areas.
The popularity of a company in one area often times makes other cities aware of its positive impact and leads to the availability of
that company in those other cities.
Demand is another vital aspect that could have led to the collapse of Blank and Marcus’ new business. How did they know
that people would want to actually learn to do things on their own if it wasn’t specifically being demanded? If the people hadn’t
exactly latched on to the idea of “doing it themselves” then the whole mission of the Home Depot Company would be lost. In th e
economy of the United States new companies are crushed if they can’t meet the demands of the consumer. In business, the
consumer is everything. In short, they were risking a lot of money to start a new company that allowed consumers to “do it
themselves” when the idea of doing so in the consumer’s mind might not seem logical.
Taken as a whole, the risks of starting a business are endless. In reality, anything can go wrong with the prices, the
location, the demands of the customers, or maybe even the business associates. Despite the risks though, an entrepreneur must do
whatever they can to bring about the company they feel will make everyone’s life better in the present or future. Bernie Marc us and
Arthur Blank were able to do so and are very influential even up to present times, but it still took a lot of courage, a few minor set
backs, a longing for innovation, and a large leap of faith!

7. Interstate Highway System: This system is fundamental for our nation. It provides an escape route for evacuation , travel rou tes for leisure road
trips, and a bond between every state. Most importantly, The Interstate Highway System provides a travel route for companies that need a
shipment route for their products. Long story short, it is a group of interstate highways used to connect Georgia to the res t of the United
States. One of its intentions is to persuade us to help our economy expand. Since this is true and Home Depot is a company that helps our
economy and lives, has a chain of stores operating across our nation, and needs a way to ship products back and forth, the In terstate Highway
System seems to be a perfect way to do so. This system of highways aids us by providing Georgia with seven of the most important trans-
continental interstate highways that pass through many other cities and states in the nation. These highways make an easier route to travel by
for the shipment of supplies and products to other stores in the Home Depot chain.
Hartsfield Jackson International Airport :This International Airport is one way we as Georgians can be off ,on an almost non -stop flight , to
approximately any place in the world When this airport sends off its planes, it can go basically anywhere except for the continents of Australia
and Antarctica. During the flight, the maximum amount of stops made are exactly two. This principle makes all of the flights almost non-stop
to its destination. The airport it is set on providing services, improving the air , keeping the air traffic from being crammed and makes it an
ideal method of transportation for Home Depot and other businesses that need to ship their products to local, state, and inte rnational
locations across the globe. One of the busiest airports in the world, the Hartsfield Jackson International Airport is a grea t source for the
shipment of mail, cargo, and its large amount of passengers. Since this airport is thriving, Home Depot stores in Georgia can use it to stay
linked with their chain of stores in other sites.
Deepwater Ports: The Georgia Ports Authority (GPA) is in charge of the Deepwater Ports here in Georgia. The main goals of these ports is "to
develop, maintain, and operate ocean and inland river ports within Georgia; foster international trade and new industry for s tate and local
communities; promote Georgia's agricultural, industrial, and natural resources; and maintain the natural quality of the environment." (take n
from: http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?path=/Transportation/WaterTransportation&id=h-1298)
This aspiration is very beneficial to Home Depot since is, in fact, a supplier to the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and China. Another objective of the
ports is to spark the use of Georgia’s resources from industry, which automatically points to Home Depot, a company that supplies the
United States and other countries with home improvement products. Also, Savannah's Port offers a direct sail to China, a co untry with Home
Depot stores., making it a choice for the transportation of Home Depot products. Lastly, theses ports internationally transport the goods that
are of the highest demand on the market. Home improvement is an industry we all invest in, making it in high demand. Consequently,
Home Depot needs the assistance of these ports to aid them in their connection with their overseas and national consumers in other cities,
countries, and nations.

8. Starting a business is probably one of the scariest things a Some of the kinds of products, companies, goods, and services that
person can do. It appears to take a lot of patience, trust, and putting would be successful are listed below:
your life out on the line. Entrepreneurs have to have everlasting
perseverance in order to pick themselves up, dust off their clothes, Successful products, companies, goods, and
services.
and find a new innovative way to bring their business to the top.
These intelligent people have to fight a good fight and maybe even Beauty salons, hair products, barbershops,
work their whole life to get their business in working condition. shampoos, conditioners, spas, facial cleansers,
When I hear the words “new company”, I think of all of the body wash, soaps, and etc. (if proved to be a good
Pampering
product) would be successful because people
painstaking hours it takes to find a business partner, think of a always need to have their hair fixed and need to
unique idea, and find a way to get it started. I also imagine how they make sure their bodies stay clean.
have to purchase all of the products, find associates, fill out
Since there is plenty of technology in our daily
documentation, gather funds to advertise, and, if it doesn’t fail, a lives, it is imperative to have different software,
location with perfect conditions and consumers. Technology accessories, professional help , and music, videos,
Starting a business today is adding to the pressure though, and etc. to download to their computer, mp3 ,
considering our economic status as a recession. Even though things iPod, or etc.
are slowly getting better, there are still traces of our sluggish Everyone likes to keep the environment in
economic activity and the decline in economic success. Our nation is equilibrium and to do so like to have eco-friendly
becoming more reserved and are choosing to save our wealth, Environment
accessories, lighting, clothes, cleaning supplies,
meaning we’re chasing sales and great deals. This also means that we and homes making it easy to start a business that
sells products keep our surroundings clean and
don’t have the time or money to invest in new gadgets, let alone safe.
companies.
Two components I’ve noticed that make it harder to start a In conclusion, in order to stay alive in our economy today,
company is our nation’s desire to stay environmentally friendly and an entrepreneur must keep up with the world. Another thing they
our efforts to keep up with technology. Some people believe that if must remember is to stay innovative and as unique as possible.
it’s not good for the environment, then they won’t buy it! When it Lastly, the company has to appeal to everyone’s needs, likes, and
comes down to technology, products that people want are narrowed wants. I think that following through with these things would launch
down to the “most modern’”. It’s kind of like a case of keeping up a company even when it seems like times are tough.
with the Joneses. Everyone wants a brand name, not some sort of
lousy imitation. Keeping this in mind, you would think that
“coming out with something new” would be noticeably difficult.
On the other hand , some products, companies, goods, or
services could survive in our “cut throat “ consumption decisions,
even though there wouldn’t be very many. A majority of them
would deal with pampering, technology, and the environment.

10. http://www.google.com/search?q=Home+depot+history&hl=en&tbs=tl:1&tbo=u&ei=KYmdS5W-
NYGC8gb99eCqDg&sa=X&oi=timeline_result&ct=title&resnum=11&ved=0CC4Q5wIwCg
http://www.entrepreneur.com/growyourbusiness/radicalsandvisionaries/article197614.html
http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-1920&sug=y
http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-1908
http://corporate.homedepot.com/wps/portal/History
http://www.sprawl-busters.com/hometown.html
http://www.search.com/reference/Home_Depot
http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-1886
http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2423
http://www.china.gaports.com/
http://geography.about.com/od/urbaneconomicgeography/a/interstates.htm
http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?path=/Transportation/WaterTransportation&id=h-1298