Business

Leader in Home Improvement Says There’s No Place Like Mooresville

Lowe’s environmentally sensitive campus could house up to 12,000 workers.

When the nation’s second-largest home improvement retailer – and one of the nation’s fastest-growing chains – needed more breathing room‚ they found it in Mooresville.

“We needed access to a talented workforce that would be able to support the company as we grow well into the future‚” says Chris Ahearn‚ vice president of public relations for Lowe’s Cos.‚ which relocated its corporate offices to Mooresville from Wilkes County.

With its close proximity to Charlotte and a growing population of 67‚000‚ Lowe’s officials saw Mooresville as a bigger pond in which to fish for workers.

Lowe’s purchased land in Iredell County in 2001 after an exhaustive search that included such major cities as Dallas‚ Chicago‚ Raleigh‚ Atlanta and Columbus‚ Ohio. Factors they considered included workforce demographics‚ education‚ housing‚ quality of life and transportation.

The company is now in the midst of the third phase of its expansion plan‚ which will bring more employees to the area. When the master plan is fully complete‚ the campus will accommodate up to 12‚000 people‚ Ahearn says.

Lowe’s Mooresville customer support center opened in 2003‚ and the next year the company announced plans for its second phase‚ a 136‚000-square-foot addition to house 600 employees.

Phases I and II total 537‚000 square feet and house about 2‚100 employees. When complete in fall 2008‚ phase III will house about 2‚400 people and total 735‚000 square feet.

“We will do a phased move over a four- to six-month period‚” Ahearn says.

The newest facilities were designed to accommodate Lowe’s anticipated growth over the next few years.

Phase III expands the site’s conference center facilities. It also provides Lowe’s with an auditorium. “It will be convenient for large presentations‚” Ahearn says.

The campus buildings‚ which are connected by enclosed walkways‚ surround a spring-fed lake. A terrace‚ suitable for lunch‚ invites employees to take a break and get a breath of fresh air‚ she says. Lowe’s has been investigating the installation of wetlands to serve as a filtration system for the lake. “We’re trying to be environmentally friendly‚ as well‚” Ahearn says.

The campus also includes a “planogram” facility in a 94‚000-square-foot building that is home to the company’s quality assurance and business television departments. The laboratory-like planogram helps with design and inventory. For instance‚ light bulb merchants might set up products exactly as they would in a store. Once installed‚ decision-makers can determine if there is enough or too much of any one type of product.

“They evaluate the products the way they would look in a store‚” Ahearn explains. “Once they make their decision‚ then it goes out the stores. The light bulbs would come down and another product would go up – maybe garden hoses and sprinklers. (The Mooresville Lowe’s retail store often serves as a testing ground for new products.)

It is easy to see why Lowe’s continues to ramp up operations. With fiscal year 2006 sales of $46.9 billion‚ the Fortune 50 company serves about 13 million customers a week at more than 1‚425 home improvement stores in 49 states.

There are currently no plans on the horizon for phase IV‚ Ahearn says. “We do have a master plan that will include additional buildings as the need arises. But we have no timeline for that.”

Story by Pam George
Photo by Ian Curcio

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