Home Depot (The)

“Online and other digital capabilities, as well as AI tools, facilitate competitive entry, price transparency, and comparison shopping, increasing the level of competition we face.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“New channels and tools to enhance the customer experience appear and change rapidly, and some of those technologies, such as generative and agentic AI tools, may dramatically change customer shopping and buying habits.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“The availability of AI may enable new types of threat actors who may not otherwise have had the capabilities to engage in malicious activity to do so, or may enhance the capabilities of nation-state actors or organizing or coordinating groups to carry out attacks, or may generally enable novel types of attacks to be developed and deployed.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In addition, we are leveraging AI tools to improve our search, recommendations, and chat features, and offering new AI-powered customer-facing tools such as Magic ApronTM, which supports customers and associates with online product and project inquiries, and our AI-powered Blueprint Takeoffs Tool and Material List Builder, which generate project-specific materials lists and quotes.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We also recognize that another critical part of delivering an excellent customer experience in the store is having products on our shelves, and we have enhanced our use of technology such as Computer Vision, which provides greater visibility into where product is located, including both on shelves and in the overhead space, enabling us to drive higher on-shelf availability.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“OUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES A typical Home Depot store stocks approximately 30,000 to 40,000 items during the year, including both national brand name and proprietary products, across the following merchandising departments: Appliances, Bath, Building Materials, Electrical, Flooring, Hardware, Indoor Garden, Kitchen & Blinds, Lighting, Lumber, Millwork, Outdoor Garden, Paint, Plumbing, Power, and Storage & Organization.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In fiscal 2024, we acquired SRS, a leading residential specialty trade distribution company across several verticals engaged in the distribution of residential and commercial roofing products and complementary building products, landscape supplies, and swimming pool supplies serving the professional roofer, landscaper, and pool contractor.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“The acquisition of GMS by SRS in fiscal 2025 further expanded our ability to serve Pros by adding specialty interior building products such as wallboard, ceilings, steel framing and complementary products for residential and commercial projects.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“GMS Acquisition On June 29, 2025, we entered into a definitive agreement to acquire GMS, a leading distributor of specialty building products, including drywall, ceilings, steel framing and other complementary construction products, through branches located across the U.S. and Canada.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We offer our customers a wide assortment of home improvement products, building materials, lawn and garden products, décor products, and facilities MRO products, in stores and online.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Pros These customers are primarily professional renovators/remodelers, general contractors, homebuilders, maintenance professionals, handymen, property managers, building service contractors and specialty tradespeople, such as electricians, landscapers, insulation installers, plumbers, painters, pool contractors, roofers, and wallboard and ceiling installers. These customers build, renovate, remodel, repair, and maintain residential properties, multifamily properties, hospitality properties, and commercial facilities, including educational, healthcare, governmental, institutional, and office buildings, as well as data centers.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We act as a general contractor to provide installation services to our DIFM customers through professional third-party licensed and insured installers.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“GMS Acquisition On June 29, 2025, we entered into a definitive agreement to acquire GMS, a leading distributor of specialty building products, including drywall, ceilings, steel framing and other complementary construction products, through branches located across the U.S. and Canada.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“For certain payment methods, including credit and debit cards, we pay interchange fees and other costs to accept these payments, and we may also incur losses, all of which may increase over time and raise our operating costs.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We accept payments using a variety of methods, including credit and debit cards, our PLCCs, cash, electronic payments, checks, digital wallets, loan programs including installment loans, trade credit, and gift cards, and we may offer new payment options over time.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Trade credit offerings are an important part of serving Pros, including SRS customers, and we anticipate expanding our Pro Trade Credit program as we further develop our capabilities.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Online and other digital capabilities, as well as AI tools, facilitate competitive entry, price transparency, and comparison shopping, increasing the level of competition we face.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In addition, as our customers continue to leverage our enhanced interconnected and fulfillment options, a greater concentration of online sales with direct fulfillment could result in a reduction in the amount of traffic in our stores, which would, in turn, reduce the opportunities for cross-selling of merchandise that such traffic creates and could reduce our overall sales and adversely affect our financial performance.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Through our technology infrastructure, we are able to provide an improved overall shopping and interconnected experience that empowers our customers to shop and interact with us from a variety of electronic devices and digital platforms at each stage of their shopping journey. We use our digital platforms as sales channels for our products and services, as methods of providing inspiration, and as sources of product, project, and other relevant information to our customers to help drive sales.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We believe our premium real estate footprint provides a distinct competitive advantage.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We offer our customers a wide assortment of home improvement products, building materials, lawn and garden products, décor products, and facilities MRO products, in stores and online.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Pros These customers are primarily professional renovators/remodelers, general contractors, homebuilders, maintenance professionals, handymen, property managers, building service contractors and specialty tradespeople, such as electricians, landscapers, insulation installers, plumbers, painters, pool contractors, roofers, and wallboard and ceiling installers. These customers build, renovate, remodel, repair, and maintain residential properties, multifamily properties, hospitality properties, and commercial facilities, including educational, healthcare, governmental, institutional, and office buildings, as well as data centers.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Once products are purchased, customers seek alternate options for delivery of those products, including advance ordering through digital platforms for Pros, and they often expect quick, timely, and low-price or free delivery, real-time updates on delivery status, and/or convenient pickup or delivery options.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In recent years, ports in the U.S. and elsewhere have been impacted by capacity constraints, port congestion and delays, periodic labor disputes, strikes, security issues, weather-related events, and natural or man-made disasters.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“As part of enhancing the interconnected experience, over the past several years, we have invested in our supply chain network with the goal of achieving the fastest, most efficient and most reliable delivery capabilities in home improvement. With that investment now largely complete, our supply chain initiatives have positioned us to operate effectively and meet our customers’ needs for product availability and fast, reliable delivery.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In addition, regulators, customers, shareholders, associates, and other stakeholders remain focused on cybersecurity, data privacy, human capital management and sustainability matters and related disclosures. These changing rules, regulations and stakeholder expectations have resulted in, and may continue to result in, increased general and administrative expenses, heightened risks of litigation and enforcement actions, and increased management time and attention spent complying with or meeting such regulations and expectations.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Risk Management and Strategy We recognize the importance of assessing, identifying, and managing material risks associated with cybersecurity threats. We have implemented cybersecurity processes, technologies, and controls to aid in our efforts to assess, identify, and manage such risks.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We also provide tool and equipment rentals at many locations, providing value and convenience for both Pros and consumers.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“This approach extends from the products and services we offer to our customers; to our store construction, maintenance and operations; to our supply chain and packaging initiatives; and to our responsible sourcing program. As we strive to operate sustainably, we focus on sourcing products responsibly, driving innovation, and reducing our environmental impact.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“OUR CUSTOMERS We serve two primary customer groups — consumers (including both DIY and DIFM customers) and Pros — and have developed varying approaches to meet their diverse needs: DIY Customers These customers are typically homeowners who purchase products and complete their own projects and installations.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Through our technology infrastructure, we are able to provide an improved overall shopping and interconnected experience that empowers our customers to shop and interact with us from a variety of electronic devices and digital platforms at each stage of their shopping journey. We use our digital platforms as sales channels for our products and services, as methods of providing inspiration, and as sources of product, project, and other relevant information to our customers to help drive sales.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“This approach extends from the products and services we offer to our customers; to our store construction, maintenance and operations; to our supply chain and packaging initiatives; and to our responsible sourcing program. As we strive to operate sustainably, we focus on sourcing products responsibly, driving innovation, and reducing our environmental impact.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“For many years, we have worked to diversify our global supply chain. During fiscal 2025, in addition to our U.S. sourcing operations, we maintained sourcing offices in Mexico, Canada, India, Vietnam, Taiwan and China, as well as certain locations in Europe.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We also provide MRO products and related value-added services to multifamily, hospitality, healthcare, and government housing facilities, among others, primarily through our subsidiary HD Supply.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“The strong strategic relationships that our merchandising organization builds with our vendors position us to deliver on our goals for our customers and offer a compelling business proposition for these market-leading suppliers. As part of our focus on product differentiation, we have formed strategic alliances and exclusive relationships with certain suppliers to market products under a variety of well-recognized brand names.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“OUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES A typical Home Depot store stocks approximately 30,000 to 40,000 items during the year, including both national brand name and proprietary products, across the following merchandising departments: Appliances, Bath, Building Materials, Electrical, Flooring, Hardware, Indoor Garden, Kitchen & Blinds, Lighting, Lumber, Millwork, Outdoor Garden, Paint, Plumbing, Power, and Storage & Organization.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“INTRODUCTION The Home Depot, Inc. is the world’s largest home improvement retailer based on net sales for fiscal 2025. We offer our customers a wide assortment of home improvement products, building materials, lawn and garden products, décor products, and facilities MRO products, in stores and online.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In addition, we have identified areas that have experienced significant population growth or where market voids exist. In fiscal 2023, we initiated a plan to open approximately 80 new stores over a five-year period to address those opportunities, and in fiscal 2025, we opened 12 new stores. We expect to complete this goal of approximately 80 new stores in fiscal 2027, after which point we plan to open approximately 15 to 20 new stores per year.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our technology infrastructure and the third-party systems with which we interact, as well as any systems those third parties utilize, are subject to, and on occasion have experienced, damage, interruption, or malicious activity from a number of causes, including power and other critical infrastructure outages; computer and telecommunications failures; computer viruses; data or security breaches; internal or external data theft or misuse; cyber-attacks, including the use of malicious codes, worms, phishing, smishing, vishing, spyware, denial of service attacks, and ransomware; responsive containment measures by us that may involve voluntarily taking systems offline; natural disasters and catastrophic events such as fires, floods, earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, or other extreme weather events; public health concerns, such as pandemics and quarantines; geopolitical tensions or conflicts, military conflicts, acts of war, terrorism or civil unrest; other systems outages; inadequate or ineffective redundancy; and design or usage errors or malfeasance by our associates, contractors or third-party service providers.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our information systems, and those of our third-party service providers, are vulnerable to continually evolving data protection and cybersecurity risks. Despite our efforts, our cybersecurity risk management processes may not be fully implemented, complied with or effective in preventing or mitigating future cybersecurity risks. Unauthorized parties, including criminal threat actors, nation-states, or insiders (including associates or contractors engaged in fraudulent or malicious activities), have in the past gained access, and will continue to attempt to gain access, to these systems and data through technical vulnerabilities, breach of security policies, fraud or other means of deceiving or coercing our associates, contractors or third-party service providers, which could jeopardize the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of such information systems or data that we may handle.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In addition, the risk of cyber-attacks has increased in connection with geopolitical tensions or conflicts and ongoing trade and diplomatic tensions. In light of the conflicts in Europe, the Middle East and South America and other geopolitical events, nation-state actors or their supporters and other politically-motivated actors may launch retaliatory cyber-attacks, and may attempt to cause supply chain and other third-party service provider disruptions, or take other geopolitically-motivated retaliatory actions that may disrupt our business operations, result in data compromise, or both.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“The availability of AI may enable new types of threat actors who may not otherwise have had the capabilities to engage in malicious activity to do so, or may enhance the capabilities of nation-state actors or organizing or coordinating groups to carry out attacks, or may generally enable novel types of attacks to be developed and deployed.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“The payment methods that we offer, and the selling channels in which we operate, also subject us to fraud and theft by threat actors, who are becoming increasingly more sophisticated, including by using means such as AI, seeking to obtain unauthorized access to or exploit weaknesses that may exist in our sales, payments, and payment processing systems.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We are predominantly self-insured for a number of different risk categories, such as general liability (including product liability), property loss, workers’ compensation, employee group medical, employment practices liability and wage and hour claims, automobile claims, and cybersecurity and privacy liability, with third-party insurance coverage for certain catastrophic risks above the self-insurance levels.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Associate engagement is the emotional commitment associates have to The Home Depot. It is vital to our culture and to our success.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We and our suppliers have experienced, and may experience in the future, labor shortages at some of our distribution and fulfillment centers both due to the competitive labor market and unexpected events such as pandemics and quarantines. Such labor shortages, whether temporary or sustained, may adversely impact the flow or availability of products to our stores and customers.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“These positions often have high turnover rates, which can lead to increased training and retention costs, particularly in a competitive labor market.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“To preserve and protect that customer experience, we focus on cultivating a compelling associate experience, which we believe supports our ability to attract and retain our associates. This includes investing in competitive wages and benefits while also providing the culture, tools, training, and development opportunities that make working at The Home Depot an enjoyable and rewarding experience.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We continue to make wage investments to ensure our compensation packages reflect the evolving circumstances across our markets.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our success depends upon our ability to attract, develop and retain highly qualified associates to provide excellent customer service and to support our strategic initiatives while also controlling our labor costs. Our customers expect a high level of customer service and product knowledge from our associates.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“These trends include those driven by changes in the macroeconomic or political environment, geopolitical tensions or conflicts, military conflicts, or civil unrest, as well as unexpected weather conditions, natural disasters, or public health issues (including pandemics or quarantines and related impacts) that impact our customers.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Natural disasters, such as hurricanes, tropical storms, fires, floods, droughts or water scarcity, tornadoes, and earthquakes; unseasonable, unexpected or extreme weather conditions; acts of terrorism or violence, including active shooter situations; public health concerns, such as pandemics and quarantines and related impacts; civil unrest; geopolitical tensions or conflicts, or military conflicts or acts of war, as well as any related sanctions or other government or private responses; or similar disruptions and catastrophic events could have and on occasion have had an adverse effect on our operations and financial performance in a number of ways.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Demand for certain of our products has historically been influenced by the occurrence of seasonal events, such as storms. The impact of these events on our sales varies depending on their location, frequency and magnitude.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Furthermore, the potential long-term impacts of climate change, whether involving physical risks (such as extreme weather conditions) or transition risks (such as regulatory or technology changes), could be widespread and unpredictable. Over time, these changes could affect, for example, the availability and cost of or demand for certain products, commodities, and energy (including utilities), which in turn may impact our ability to procure certain goods or services for the operation of our business at the quantities and levels we consider optimal.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“These trends include those driven by changes in the macroeconomic or political environment, geopolitical tensions or conflicts, military conflicts, or civil unrest, as well as unexpected weather conditions, natural disasters, or public health issues (including pandemics or quarantines and related impacts) that impact our customers.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In addition, the risk of cyber-attacks has increased in connection with geopolitical tensions or conflicts and ongoing trade and diplomatic tensions. In light of the conflicts in Europe, the Middle East and South America and other geopolitical events, nation-state actors or their supporters and other politically-motivated actors may launch retaliatory cyber-attacks, and may attempt to cause supply chain and other third-party service provider disruptions, or take other geopolitically-motivated retaliatory actions that may disrupt our business operations, result in data compromise, or both.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Natural disasters, such as hurricanes, tropical storms, fires, floods, droughts or water scarcity, tornadoes, and earthquakes; unseasonable, unexpected or extreme weather conditions; acts of terrorism or violence, including active shooter situations; public health concerns, such as pandemics and quarantines and related impacts; civil unrest; geopolitical tensions or conflicts, or military conflicts or acts of war, as well as any related sanctions or other government or private responses; or similar disruptions and catastrophic events could have and on occasion have had an adverse effect on our operations and financial performance in a number of ways.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our ability to access products from our suppliers can be, and on occasion has been, adversely affected by economic or political instability; civil unrest; geopolitical tensions or conflicts, or military conflicts or acts of war, as well as any related sanctions or other government or private responses; acts of terrorism or violence; public health issues (including pandemics and related impacts); the financial instability of suppliers; suppliers’ noncompliance with applicable laws; contract disputes or inability to maintain favorable contract terms; trade restrictions; tariffs; currency exchange rates; disruptions in our suppliers’ logistics or supply chain networks or information technology systems; inability to sell certain products due to customs actions, including regulatory enforcement inquiries, holds, detentions, and exclusions; raw material or other shortages; actual, potential or perceived noncompliance with our standards for suppliers or other controversies regarding suppliers’ business practices or operations; and other factors beyond our or our suppliers’ control.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Generally, our highest volume of sales occurs in our second fiscal quarter, as we move into the spring season in the regions in which we operate.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our financial performance depends significantly on the stability of the housing and home improvement markets, as well as general economic conditions, including changes in gross domestic product. Adverse conditions in or uncertainty about these markets, the economy, or the political or social climate could adversely impact, and we believe in some cases has adversely impacted, our customers’ confidence or financial condition, causing them to decide against purchasing home improvement products and services, causing them to delay purchasing decisions, or impacting their ability to pay for products and services.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Further, our specialty trade and MRO customers, who have higher spend and longer-term relationships than a typical retail customer, increasingly use trade credit to finance their purchases, as do some of our other Pros in order to purchase our products. Their ability to pay is highly dependent on the economic strength of the industry in which they operate. If these customers are unable to repay the trade credit invoice, we may face greater default risk, which could reduce our cash flow and adversely affect our results of operations.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Even when we are able to find alternate sources for certain products, they may cost more or require us to incur higher transportation costs, which could adversely impact our profitability and financial condition.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We continue to make wage investments to ensure our compensation packages reflect the evolving circumstances across our markets.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Prices of certain commodity products, including lumber and other raw materials, are historically volatile and are subject to fluctuations arising from changes in domestic and international supply and demand, inflationary or deflationary pressures, labor costs, competition, market speculation, government regulations, tariffs and trade restrictions (including retaliatory tariffs), changes in trade and other policies of the U.S. and other countries, natural disasters, geopolitical tensions or conflicts, military conflicts or acts of war, and periodic delays in delivery.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“These trends include those driven by changes in the macroeconomic or political environment, geopolitical tensions or conflicts, military conflicts, or civil unrest, as well as unexpected weather conditions, natural disasters, or public health issues (including pandemics or quarantines and related impacts) that impact our customers.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Natural disasters, such as hurricanes, tropical storms, fires, floods, droughts or water scarcity, tornadoes, and earthquakes; unseasonable, unexpected or extreme weather conditions; acts of terrorism or violence, including active shooter situations; public health concerns, such as pandemics and quarantines and related impacts; civil unrest; geopolitical tensions or conflicts, or military conflicts or acts of war, as well as any related sanctions or other government or private responses; or similar disruptions and catastrophic events could have and on occasion have had an adverse effect on our operations and financial performance in a number of ways.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our ability to access products from our suppliers can be, and on occasion has been, adversely affected by economic or political instability; civil unrest; geopolitical tensions or conflicts, or military conflicts or acts of war, as well as any related sanctions or other government or private responses; acts of terrorism or violence; public health issues (including pandemics and related impacts); the financial instability of suppliers; suppliers’ noncompliance with applicable laws; contract disputes or inability to maintain favorable contract terms; trade restrictions; tariffs; currency exchange rates; disruptions in our suppliers’ logistics or supply chain networks or information technology systems; inability to sell certain products due to customs actions, including regulatory enforcement inquiries, holds, detentions, and exclusions; raw material or other shortages; actual, potential or perceived noncompliance with our standards for suppliers or other controversies regarding suppliers’ business practices or operations; and other factors beyond our or our suppliers’ control.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Rapid and significant changes in commodity and other prices, such as changes in lumber prices, and our ability to pass them on to our customers or manage them through our portfolio strategy, may be limited by the competitive environment in which we operate, and may affect the demand for our products, our sales and our profit margins.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Prices of certain commodity products, including lumber and other raw materials, are historically volatile and are subject to fluctuations arising from changes in domestic and international supply and demand, inflationary or deflationary pressures, labor costs, competition, market speculation, government regulations, tariffs and trade restrictions (including retaliatory tariffs), changes in trade and other policies of the U.S. and other countries, natural disasters, geopolitical tensions or conflicts, military conflicts or acts of war, and periodic delays in delivery.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Under our standard supplier buying agreements, our suppliers must comply with our responsible sourcing standards, which cover a variety of expectations across multiple areas, including supply chain transparency, health and safety, environmental laws and regulations, compensation, hours of work, and prohibitions on child and forced labor. Further, suppliers must comply with Company policies and applicable law, including applicable laws governing the sourcing of raw materials, such as timber and minerals, used in our products.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our financial performance depends significantly on the stability of the housing and home improvement markets, as well as general economic conditions, including changes in gross domestic product. Adverse conditions in or uncertainty about these markets, the economy, or the political or social climate could adversely impact, and we believe in some cases has adversely impacted, our customers’ confidence or financial condition, causing them to decide against purchasing home improvement products and services, causing them to delay purchasing decisions, or impacting their ability to pay for products and services.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our ability to access products from our suppliers can be, and on occasion has been, adversely affected by economic or political instability; civil unrest; geopolitical tensions or conflicts, or military conflicts or acts of war, as well as any related sanctions or other government or private responses; acts of terrorism or violence; public health issues (including pandemics and related impacts); the financial instability of suppliers; suppliers’ noncompliance with applicable laws; contract disputes or inability to maintain favorable contract terms; trade restrictions; tariffs; currency exchange rates; disruptions in our suppliers’ logistics or supply chain networks or information technology systems; inability to sell certain products due to customs actions, including regulatory enforcement inquiries, holds, detentions, and exclusions; raw material or other shortages; actual, potential or perceived noncompliance with our standards for suppliers or other controversies regarding suppliers’ business practices or operations; and other factors beyond our or our suppliers’ control.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In managing our business, we also rely heavily on the integrity of, security of, and consistent access to, systems that provide operational and financial data and capabilities related to sales (both in store and online), customer data, supplier data, associate data, jobseeker data, partner data, demand forecasting, merchandise ordering, inventory replenishment, supply chain management, payment processing, order fulfillment, customer service, and post-purchase support.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In addition, to deliver our interconnected customer experience, we must attract and retain a large number of skilled professionals, including technology professionals, to implement our ongoing technology and other investments. The market for these professionals is very competitive.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our ability to meet our labor needs while controlling labor costs is subject to numerous factors, including increased market pressures with respect to prevailing wage rates, unemployment levels, and health and other insurance costs; the impact of legislation or regulations governing labor relations, employment, immigration, minimum wage, and healthcare benefits; changing demographics and expectations among the workforce; safety and security in our stores and other facilities; and our brand and reputation within the labor market.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Our costs of doing business could increase as a result of changes in, expanded enforcement of, or adoption of new federal, state, local or international laws, regulations and executive orders. We are subject to various U.S. federal, state and local laws and regulations, as well as international laws and regulations, that govern numerous aspects of our business.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Furthermore, with respect to delivery options, customers are seeking faster and/or guaranteed delivery times, real-time updates on delivery status, low-price or free shipping, and/or convenient pickup options. Our ability to be competitive on delivery and pickup times, options and costs depends on many factors, as described more fully under “Our Supply Chain” below, and our interconnected strategy.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“We have market delivery operations that function as local hubs to consolidate freight for dispatch to customers for the final mile of delivery, with a focus on appliances. Because we typically do not stock appliances in our facilities, we have invested in our capabilities to control more of our appliance delivery end-to-end, manage our appliance delivery volume through our market delivery operations, and expand our last mile delivery capacity.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“As our customers expect a more personalized experience, our ability to collect, use, retain, and protect relevant customer data is important for effectively meeting their expectations. Our ability to collect and use that data, however, is subject to a number of external factors, including the impact of legislation or regulations governing data privacy, data-driven technologies such as AI, and data security, as well as customer expectations around data collection, retention, and use.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Once products are purchased, customers seek alternate options for delivery of those products, including advance ordering through digital platforms for Pros, and they often expect quick, timely, and low-price or free delivery, real-time updates on delivery status, and/or convenient pickup or delivery options.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In addition, regulators, customers, shareholders, associates, and other stakeholders remain focused on cybersecurity, data privacy, human capital management and sustainability matters and related disclosures. These changing rules, regulations and stakeholder expectations have resulted in, and may continue to result in, increased general and administrative expenses, heightened risks of litigation and enforcement actions, and increased management time and attention spent complying with or meeting such regulations and expectations.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“In addition, our operations in international markets create risk due to foreign currency exchange rates and fluctuations in those rates, which may adversely impact our sales and profitability.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“Customer preferences and expectations related to sustainability of products and operations are also changing.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“During fiscal 2025, we opened ten new stores in the U.S. and two new stores in Mexico, resulting in a total store count of 2,359 at February 1, 2026. A total of 324 of our stores, or 13.7%, were located in Canada and Mexico.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“During fiscal 2025, we opened ten new stores in the U.S. and two new stores in Mexico, resulting in a total store count of 2,359 at February 1, 2026. A total of 324 of our stores, or 13.7%, were located in Canada and Mexico.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself

“A total of 324 of our stores, or 13.7%, were located in Canada and Mexico.”

Annual report 2026A · The company itself