A Wilkes County
Firm Goes Places
Tlic lalosl place It's gone — Helpre.
Ohio — just one of a number of new
outlets.
(In vest or" s R e oiler)
With as much fanfare as it can
muster, building supplies retailer
Lowe’s Companies Inc., celebrates the
opening of its newest store in Belpre,
Ohio (just across the Ohio from Park¬
ersburg, W. Va.) this weekend. Heavy
advertising, radio broadcasts and door
prizes will hail a crowd of well over
6,000 to the premises for the three-
day spree. Settled on three acres on a
railroad siding, the warehouse and
store combination offers lumber, roof-
ELEVATOR
COMPANY
A North Carolina Owned
& Operated Corporation
MANUFACTURERS OF
PASSENGER & FREIGHT
ELEVATORS-
CABLE OR HYDRAULIC
•
MAIN OFFICES & PIANT
GREENSBORO. N.C.
BRANCH OFFICE
CHARLOTTE. N. C.
fft
ing, paint, heating equipment, fixtures,
electrical supplies and an equally wide
range of consumer goods from house¬
hold appliances and cooking utensils
to lawn mowers, bicycles and toys.
Carolina Origin
The Belpre store is the latest addi¬
tion to a chain of high-volume, low-
price building material outlets begun
in 1946 by Carl Buchan. The original
store was in North Wilkcsboro. N. C,
still company headquarters. Today
there are 31 outlets in seven South
Atlantic states plus the one in Ohio.
Secretary - treasurer Leonard Herring
(a member of the "management team"
which has run Lowe’s since Buchan’s
death in 1960) reports six more stores
arc due to open by the end of this
year and another five-to-seven will
open in 1966.
The Lowe’s executive emphasizes
"our greatest growth comes from new
store openings.” He explains the aver¬
age store such as the one in Belpre is
expected to bring annual volume of
$1,800,000 in its second year of opera¬
tion.
With this formula Lowe's has multi¬
plied sales and earnings over five times
in the decade ended last July. Volume
in fiscal 1964 swelled to $48,700,000
and earnings hit $1,570,000 or $1.58
a share. In the January half of fiscal
1965 sales rose 16 per cent to $25,-
600,000 and earnings jumped 24 per
cent to $842,000 or 84c a share vs 68c.
The treasurer expects fiscal 1965 will
close with sales up to $58,000,000 and
net over $1,850,000 or $1.85-to-$2 a
share. He also points out the profit
margin has risen from 2.8 per cent
in 1959 to a current rate of 3.2 per
cent.
Lowe's stock, which was first of¬
fered publicly at 1214 in 1961, has
risen to a current high near 26 in the
over-the-counter market. Dividends on
the 990.000 common shares of which
49 per cent arc closely held are
12'Лс
quarterly.
Aim for Consumer
While Leonard Herring credits most
growth to new stores he also cites ways
in which individual store sales have
been increased. The stores still cater
predominantly to builders and related
contractors with building materials, but
during the last five years Lowe's has
concentrated on expanding higher
profit margin consumer goods which
now account for 25 per cent of volume.
For instance, Lowe's ranks as No. 1
buyer of Hotpoint appliances.
To add to customer convenience
Lowe’s last year introduced a credit
card. Leonard Herring notes that the
stores have always extended credit on
individual items but the new system
is a department store-type charge ac¬
count for all sales and is "going real
well."
The company is presently experi¬
menting with catalog sales. Catalogs
of an independent supplier were dis¬
tributed to Lowe's customers this past
Christmas. Lowe’s paid for the catalog
but receives an agent's commission on
all sales. Leonard Herring says Lowe’s
continues to explore the idea. Reasons
for going into catalogs: "First there’s
a good profit; then it helps keep your
name in front of people; also North
Carolina is one of the highest catalog
order states in the country.”
Leonard Herring is proud of Lowe's
efficiency, especially its IBM inven¬
tory control system. Data processing
machines arc now at headquarters and
are being added on the sales floors
of outlets at the rate of six-to-ten a
year.
Leonard Herring secs unlimited
growth potential for Lowe’s stores. He
points to the 1.500.000 new housing
starts annually and quotes a predic¬
tion the rate will be around 2.000.000
by 1970. Furthermore Lowe’s is able to
do well in towns with a population
of only 50.000. He reckons "there are
many communities of this sort that do
not have a one-stop building materials
merchandise outlet and where there is
an opening for a business like our
own." Further, the Appalachia aid pro¬
gram should stimulate business in
Lowe’s territory.
IQ
THE STATE. June 1, 1965
