Article Number : 1642 |
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| Date | 1/10/2007 7:54:28 AM |
| Written By | LGM & Associates Technical Flooring Services |
| View this article at: | //floorbiz.com/BizResources/NPViewArticle.asp?ArticleID=1642 |
| Abstract | CHINA STAKE: Home Depot had been planning for years to plant its flag in the rich soil of Chinese retailing. Earlier this month, the American home improvement giant did just that when it entered into an agreement with The Home Way to purchase the company and its 12 stores... |
| Article | CHINA STAKE: Home Depot had been planning for years to plant its flag in the rich soil of Chinese retailing. Earlier this month, the American home improvement giant did just that when it entered into an agreement with The Home Way to purchase the company and its 12 stores. China’s first home improvement retailer, The Home Way, had its dozen stores in six northern China cities. The price of the deal was undisclosed but industry sources put it at $100 million. With Chinese government regulatory approvals already secured, the deal is expected to close by the end of the year. Home Way will continue to be operated by its current management team, led by Du Sha, founder, chairman and CEO, according to Annette Verschuren, president of Home Depot Asia/Canada, and spearhead of the company’s retail expansion into the Chinese market. DEPOT TARGET: Earlier in the month, it seems that Home Depot itself was in the cross-hairs of private equity firms willing to pay a record $100 billion in a leveraged buyout of the huge retailer, which also has a wholesale division, HD Supply, which is growing at a phenomenal rate. Recent news reports from CNBC and the New York Post put the spotlight on Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and Texas Pacific Group and though no formal offers were made, some firms have been talking with investment banks about structuring the debt needed to finance what would be the largest leveraged buyout in history. CNBC reported investment bankers have contacted Home Depot’s board members to gauge their interest. According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Robert Nardelli, Depot’s CEO, saw nothing unusual in the exercise. “On any given day we are running numbers on lots of other companies. Somebody is probably running the numbers on us on any given day.” The company would not comment on the takeover reports. OLD FRIEND: I was deeply saddened to learn that my old buddy Joe Hogan passed away on Oct. 30 at the age of 79. He was a wonderful friend with an explosive sense of humor and a caring heart. He was most compassionate and generosity played a major role in his everyday life. He began his career in advertising in 1950 and, in 1954, he partnered with John Rose to form Hogan-Rose & Co. In 1972, he founded J.P. Hogan & Co. Headquartered in Knoxville, Tenn., Hogan and his top operative, Ted Brosseau, handled Cabin Crafts, Shaw, Greenwood Corp., Union Carbide, Evans & Black, the Synthetic Turf Council, the Atlanta Market Center and several other floor covering companies going back to 1960. We shared many memories over the years and I can still hear his booming laughter. Farewell, Joseph Patrick Hogan, farewell. WOMAN POWER: Connie Buda, assistant to the president and CEO of the World Floor Covering Association and executive administrator of the Floor Covering Industry Foundation, wasted no time solving the riddle posed in the Remember When... caption in our Nov. 27 issue. She was the first responder and she was succinct. “Super Bowl XXIV, Denver Broncos vs. San Francisco 49ers—San Francisco won 55-10.” The second responder was Michael Moore’s son-in-law, Brad. The men work together in Moore’s CarpetsPlus operation in Medford, Ore. Wrote Brad: “I had bets with two brothers-in-law that year who live in Colorado.” He never mentioned which side of the bet he was on. As for the game itself, it was played on Jan. 29, 1990, in the Louisiana Superdome and was the worst defeat in Super Bowl history. Joe Montana, San Francisco’s quarterback was the MVP, his third in the classic, after throwing five touchdown passes. |