How to Source Home Depot Merchandise?

It is 2022! Today’s market is bombarded with buyers and suppliers. So, retailers and suppliers have to pick something unique and creative to grow steadily. Finding a perfect platform is a must, no matter where you are from, what products and services you offer, and who your target customers are. Without a perfect platform, you can never sell your products and earn good revenue from them.

So, if you are in the fashion industry, what about Home Depot? Well, you must have heard about this US-based company that is the largest retailer in the United States and the number one choice of many people. If you want to know how to source Home Depot merchandise, this guide will be helpful for you.

What is Home Depot?

Home Depot Inc., generally by the name Home Depot, is probably the largest retailer in the United States that mainly supplies a considerable portion of home improvement items. The products provided by Home Depot include construction items, several tools, appliances, and other household products. Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, this enormous retailing company has been in this field for 40+ years. Home Depot regulates a considerable number of big-box stores all over the United States, including Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S Virgin Islands, and more. Additionally, several Home Depot stores are located in Canada, Mexico, etc.

The employees at Home Depot come from diverse demographic backgrounds. A large portion of women staff, almost 38 to 41% coming from minorities, work at Home Depot. The main goal of Home Depot is to provide all home essentials all over the US and other countries in an affordable price range.

What does Home Depot offer?

Home Depot, in a word, is the ultimate destination for all home essentials. Starting from kitchen appliances to many kinds of tools. You can find everything at Home Depot. This one-stop home merchandise destination offers thousands of products and services from different categories. Some of them are

• Home décor: In this section, you can find home accents, room dividers, kids and nursery décors, artificial greenery, holiday decorations, candles, fragrances, decorative storage, decorative mirror, luggage, home office, area rugs, mats, shelf liners, etc.
• Furniture: At the Home Depot furniture section, you can find top-quality furniture for your living room, entryway, laundry room, home office, kitchen islands and carts, dining room, kids’ room, bedroom, patio area, and more.
• Wall décor: Different kinds of unique wallpapers, peel and stick faux tiles, wall decors, wall arts, mirrors, wall clocks, decorative shelving, memo boards, etc., come into this section.
• Kitchen appliances: The best kitchen appliances found at Home Depot are cookers, air fryers, toasters, blenders, mixers, shakers, slicers, grinders, coffee, espresso machines, household appliances, food preservations, and more.
• Lighting: As a supplier or a buyer, you can respectively sell and buy several types of lighting equipment from Home Depot, including ceiling fans, ceiling lights, wall lights, outdoor lighting, lamps, shades, under cabinet lights, light bulbs, chandeliers, and more.
• Bedding and bath: If you want something from the bath and bedding section of Home Depot, you can get your hands on bathrobes, sleepwear, bath accessories, bath hardware, bath towels, mattresses, throw pillows, quilts, comforters sets, etc.

How to become a supplier at Home Depot?

Now, when you have understood what Home Depot is, the question may arise in your mind about how to become a supplier at Home Depot? But, before, please note that Home Depot is flooded with different types of suppliers. It is a perfect platform to find a perfect balance between buyers and suppliers. As buyers come from different countries with different preferences and demands, Home Depot always provides several options. As a result, back in 2006, Home Depot already had 10 thousand+ suppliers. There is no need to say that the number of suppliers has increased a lot in fifteen years.

If you want to become a supplier, all you have to do is submit your request to Home Depot.com. The submission section has to provide details of the products you want to supply and other related information. Once you successfully submit your products, the merchant team of Home Depot will contact you within two months. Meanwhile, you can get all your answers related to Home Depot, your role as a supplier, and other details from the team. They will provide you with all answers and prepare you for the stages ahead.

As a non-merchandising supplier, you can supply a lot of things. Some of them are mentioned below.

·         Common store supplies, including shelving, display signage, fixtures, and more

·         IT services like staffing, computer software, computer hardware, etc.

·         Custodial services

·         Maintenance services

·         Financial services

·         Communication and marketing services

·         Transportation and logistics services

Now, you have to fill up a form available on the website called prospective non-merch supplier template. In this form, you will get asked for a few details, including:

• Company Name
• Are you a Public or Private company?
• D&B D-U-N-S Number (if available)
• Street, City, State, Zip, Website Address
• Total Annual Revenue
• US supplier only
• Diversity Status
• Contact Person Name and Phone
• Contact Person Email
• Business Type
• What types of products/services are you interested in providing to The Home Depot?
• Your current key customers in this category
• What is your geographical coverage area?
• Procurement 
• Point of Contact, etc.

Once you fill the form with valid details and submit it, the merchant team from Home Depot will contact you within a couple of weeks.

Qualified suppliers at Home Depot

If you own a company and want to participate as a supplier at Home Depot, your company must be owned at least 51% by a US citizen. In a word, you have to be a US citizen with a permanent resident alien status to apply as a supplier at Home Depot. On the other hand, you can qualify under the group of diverse participants. In this case, you can apply only if you fall under any of the groups mentioned below.

·         Woman-owned business

·         Minority-owned business

·         LGBTQ-owned business

·         Disabled-owned business

·         Veteran-owned business

So, once you successfully pass the qualification benchmark set by Home Depot, you have to get your hands on documentation and paperwork. Firstly, you must have a few third-party certifications from external certificate industries. Let’s have a look at them.

• Women's Business Enterprise National Council (www.wbenc.org)
• National Women Business Owners Corporation (www.nawbo.org)
• National Minority Supplier Development Council (Regional council certifications are valid) (www.nmsdc.org)
• US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce (www.uspaacc.com)
• National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (www.nglcc.org) (www.nglcc.org)
• State and Federal Government Agencies that certify M/WBEs (Minority/Women Business Enterprises)
• Disability: IN (www.disabilityin.org)
• Veterans Enterprises (www.va.gov/osdbu) and/or Veteran discharge papers

But, what about Indians? If everything is US-based, then how come Indians source Home Depot merchandise? Well, worry not! As you have seen above, minorities are allowed to supply at Home Depot. So, if you want to source Home Depot merchandise and qualify as a minor, you have to be within the following groups.

• African American: Originally from any of the Black racial groups of Africa
• Asian-American: Origins from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Japan, China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, the Philippines, Samoa, Guam, the US Trust Territories of the Pacific or the Northern Marinara
• Hispanic-American: Originally from Mexico, Central America, South America, the Caribbean Basin, or any of the Spanish-speaking areas of Latin America
• Native American: American Indian, Eskimo, Aleut, or Native Hawaiian

The application process

If you are qualified according to the standards set by Home Depot, you can apply now. The application process follows:

·         Firstly, download the form, fill it up, and submit it to the right place

·         When you choose a specific category, this information will get delivered to buyers. Now, they can select you as their potential partner.

·         Thirdly, the buyer will send you a response within two months. This response will encompass the buyer's feedback on your product and what potential modification you can bring to your services or products. Depending on the feedback, you can decide on your products and services.

Conclusion

That was it! Hopefully, now, you have understood how to source Home Depot merchandise. So, now, when you know how you can do so by following only a few easy steps, make sure to get your hands on them while applying as a supplier at Home Depot the next time. Then, if you somehow qualify and the team of merchants at Home Depot likes your products or services, the journey will become easier for you. So, if you are applicable against the standards set by Home Depot, make sure to apply as a supplier soon. Best of luck!