Home Depot Looks To Win With Water Initiative

April 14, 2014

To help customers save water and grow its sales in the process, Home Depot will execute a massive customer education initiative later this month.

Home Depot regularly holds in store clinics to arm customers with knowledge to tackle home improvement projects, and its newest initiative applies that thought process to a less familiar merchandise classification.  On Saturday, April 26, every one of Home Depot’s 1,977 U.S. stores will host an hour and a half long “Water Conservation Workshop,” in which 10 home improvement projects will be covered.

The emphasis will be on those things that help customers save the most water such as converting to a dual-flush toilet, switching to EPA WaterSense labeled showerheads and faucets, and installing drip irrigation and rotary nozzle or dual spray sprinklers.  Home Depot estimates its customers saved 42.5 billion gallons of water through the purchase of WaterSense labeled products.

“At The Home Depot, we’re committed to helping our customers solve everyday home improvement challenges, and for many, water conservation is one of those challenges,” said Joe McFarland, president of the retailer’s western division where drought conditions have been extreme.  “We have the products and our associates have the know-how to help our customers identify water-saving solutions and implement them at home.  These workshops help us to share that knowledge with our communities and inspire residents to take action.”

In addition to hosting workshops, Home Depot said it adjusted its in-store environment for hundreds of stores in the West, creating unique signage and shifting inventory and displays to help make customers more aware of the various actions they can take to conserve water.

“Conserving water is one of the most important things we can do for our communities, for our environment, and for our economy,” said Nancy Stoner, EPA acting assistant administrator for water.  “WaterSense labeled products provide efficiency without sacrificing performance and their use will help communities throughout the country preserve their water resources.”

Source: Retailing Today