Closure of 20 Lowe’s stores

Lowe’s, the second biggest home improvement company in the United States, is closing 20 stores with a poor overall performance. Ten of them were closed last Sunday, 16th October, and a further ten are to follow in about a month’s time. In addition, the company is putting a stop to several projects at the planning stage. While it is true that some 25 new stores are to open as scheduled this year, from 2012 Lowe’s intends to open no more than 10 to 15 DIY stores annually, not the 30 or so that previously set the standard. The branches affected by closure are just four years old on average. Ten of them were opened after 2007, eight in the two preceding years and two prior to 2006. Some 1 950 employees are losing their jobs.