Menards is a chain of home improvement stores in the Midwestern United States. The privately held company headquartered in Eau Claire, Wisconsin has 286 stores in 13 states: Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas, South Dakota, North Dakota and Wyoming
Industry ranking Since Menards is not publicly traded, it does not release sales figures. But, it is generally believed to be the third largest by sales home improvement company in the United States behind The Home Depot and Lowe’s. In 2009, Menard Inc. ranked 42nd on Forbes’ list of "America’s Largest Private Companies." The trade publication Home Channel News estimated 2007 sales at $8 billion. Rumors of an Initial Public Offering sometime in 2010 persist. A significant public offering and subsequent store and distribution center expansion would catapult Menard’s standing well beyond the current regional presence in 1/4 of the states to become the nationwide #3 rival to Home Depot and Lowes in over 3/4 of the states. Menards offers a different set of products from suppliers not carried at the other two. Every Menards store shares a common structure. Each store is primarily divided by departments: building materials, hardware, electrical, millwork, wall coverings, plumbing and housewares, floor coverings, cabinets and appliances, and groceries. Other areas of the store include the front end (cashiers, office functions, carryouts, etcetera) and the receiving crew (responsible for the lumber yard, shipments between the store and the distributions centers, and other delivery and merchandise logistics). In a typical store there is a Store Manager, two Assistant Managers, a Department manager, and various Sales Floor team members , which is dependent upon the guest volume typical at that individual store. Some departments are combined dependent upon store volume and guest traffic or only have a single Assistant Manager. Menards stores are divided into categories based on store size and product range. These categories range from P1 (Prototype size 1) to P5 (prototype size 5), Hardware Plus (smaller than a P1 with fewer building materials item selections) and non-prototype (usually stores that have moved into pre-existing locations or locations where large prototype stores will not fit, such as the 2-story stores). Recently, the 240,000 sq ft (22,000 m) and larger Menards stores began selling groceries. By adding a second story mezzanine for less often accessed items, space can be made for groceries on the main floor. In March 2005, the company opened the first 2-story, 300,000 sq ft (28,000 m) Menards megastore in St. Paul, Minnesota. It followed in November 2006 with another 2-story store in Hodgkins, Illinois. In March 2009, Menards opened its flagship megastore in Waukesha, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. The Waukesha megastore is the largest Menards in the United States and has two glass elevators, two massive industrial escalators, and a snack shop. Menards also owns and exclusively sells some of its own brands. Some of the brands found at the Menards stores are:
Menards manufactured its own concrete patio blocks as of 2008, however rumors circulated in 2009 which indicated a plan to switch back over to Anchor Block due to quality and sales issues. Menards offers its customers about 30,000 products in stock and even more through a Special Order Service. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia : Shops in wooden building materials and garden |