Photo credit: Home Depot
Home Depot first appeared on my ‘invest soon’ list decades ago. Headed up by Ted Decker, it’s become the largest home-improvement retailer in North America. A behemoth that moves more than 1.6 billion transactions a year and sits at the center of a $1.1 trillion addressable market. Leading something that big means Decker’s influence happens at nearly unrivaled scale. And not just over Home Depot’s business partners and suppliers, but over intangibles, too, particularly housing trends and the broader consumer economy.
What’s making Decker more important than ever is his latest strategic pivot. He is betting big on winning the “Pro” customer. It’s how Home Depot is treating contractors, builders, remodelers, and tradespeople as a distinct, high-value segment with very different needs from everyday DIY shoppers. At the same time, he’s pushing hundreds of AI-enabled applications across the business to modernize operations.
