The Home Depot launches $150 million fund focused on customer experience
The Home Depot® last week announced the launch of Home Depot Ventures, a $150 million initiative to identify, fund and partner with early stage companies to accelerate emerging technologies that are focused on improving the customer experience and shape the future of home improvement. Through the fund, the retail giant seeks to improve its ability to provide a seamless interconnected shopping experience, develop new and differentiated capabilities, and extend its low-cost provider position to:
- Better Serve Customers to include (1) simplifying how people invest in their homes throughout the meaningful milestones of home ownership, including initial purchase and move-in, ongoing maintenance and repairs, and renovations or remodels; and (2) evolving how professional customers efficiently manage and grow their businesses, saving them time and money.
- Better Serve Associates to improve the lives of Home Depot associates and enable them to collaborate more safely, easily and efficiently to meet the rapidly changing expectations of customers.
- Deliver Operational Excellence that drives operational excellence to continue to deliver value for customers, including platform innovation, delivery optimization, asset and network optimization, and the application of data science.
According to this news release, the fund will consider investment opportunities in businesses at various stages of development, with an emphasis on early and growth stage companies that solve challenges for The Home Depot’s customers and show potential to scale. Home Depot Ventures will serve as a valuable partner by providing growing companies with direct access to the expertise and expansive footprint of the broader enterprise.
