Home Depot Supply, a leading diversified wholesale distributor in the U.S. and Canada, has recently decided to lay off 350 employees and consolidate 25 branches in order to reduce its operating expenses amid deteriorating fundamentals in the real estate construction industry. Since the fourth quarter of 2008, the company has laid off approximately 4,500 employees across the U.S. and consolidated about 210 branches.
Home Depot Supply was earlier a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Home Depot Inc. (HD), the world’s largest home improvement specialty retailer. The division was sold off in 2007 for $8.5 billion, as the parent company wanted to focus on its core business. Currently Home Depot retains a 12.5% ownership stake in Home Depot Supply.
Home Depot Supply provides products and value-added services to professional customers in the Infrastructure & Energy, Maintenance, Repair & Improvement, and Specialty Construction markets, with a focus on contractors, builders, maintenance professionals, government and municipal entities and industrial businesses.
The company reported dismal third quarter 2009 results, with a net loss of $267 million on net sales of $1.9 billion. At third quarter end, the company also had nearly $5.8 billion of long-term debt. Consequently, Home Depot Supply is currently focusing on increasing its liquidity by reducing operating expenses through lay offs and consolidating its operations.
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