Last year, Lowe’s launched Into the Blue, a product pitch event that provides fledgling entrepreneurs and product inventors a path that could lead to getting their products on the shelves of Lowe’s or online at Lowes.com.
The annual, one-day event that recently attracted 335 people from 209 companies across nine countries didn’t just happen out of the blue. It’s the brainchild of Lowe’s executive vice president of merchandising, Bill Boltz. He noticed a substantial number of inquiries coming via LinkedIn, email and mail. There seemed to be plenty of novel ideas – but no formal process to vet them. He shared the conundrum with Sarah Dodd, senior vice president of merchandising. “Sarah and her team took the vision, put it on steroids and Into the Blue was born,” Boltz said.
Into the Blue is one of Dodd’s favorite workdays of the year. “We’re trying to find unique products and vendors, and sometimes it’s hard for these vendors to know where to go, who to turn to, what email address to use, what LinkedIn account to contact,” she said. Into the Blue makes it easy.
The competition to become a Lowe’s supplier is stiff. “It’s hard to get into Lowe’s,” she added. “This event provides an opportunity to have everyone in one spot at one time, ready and excited to present us with their new products.”
Boltz likes seeing what’s become of his vision – and how it’s benefitting both small businesses and Lowe’s customers. “First of all, the event allows us to find new products, and we know that ‘new’ sells,” he said. “Number two, it helps us ensure that we’re representing products that originated in, and can benefit, the communities we serve. We might find a product that’s specific to a certain market or specific area of the country. And three, we’re finding, minority-owned and women-owned suppliers that we wouldn’t have known about otherwise. The hope is that we find some golden nuggets among these 200-plus potential suppliers. So far, we’ve been impressed.”
On a recent June day, hundreds of aspiring entrepreneurs, made their way to Charlotte, North Carolina with a shared dream of becoming the next Lowe’s Into the Blue success story. Theresa Carrington and her 501(c) 3 nonprofit organization dedicated to ending poverty in developing countries, 10 by 3, were among the hopefuls. She and her colleague, Blanca D’Avila, had come to pitch their handwoven artisan goods and were about to experience a day they’ll never forget.
After a severely delayed flight caused them initial stress about getting to the Lowe’s Tech Hub, they eventually made it to their pitch meeting. Carrington recalled how it went: “We couldn’t even get through our pitch before Lowe’s team members started asking questions. After the pitch, they said they’d be willing to try our product online. We were a little disappointed; our product really needs to be on the floor of the stores. Then something magical happened. We were prepared to go back to our hotel, and all of a sudden, my phone rang. On the other end, someone said, ‘I'm here to congratulate you. You’ve made it to the next level. Can you pitch again in less than 15 minutes?’”
After racing to their car to get their baskets and making it to that next meeting, everything went smoothly for 10 by 3 the rest of the day. By the end of the event, Carrington and D’Avila were celebrating a partnership with Lowe’s, and their hand-crafted baskets will be on store shelves and at Lowes.com soon.
Carrington has advice for other entrepreneurs: “If you’re thinking about applying for Into the Blue, don’t think twice. At the bare minimum, you are going to learn more about your brand, you’re going to put together a presentation and you’re going to get yourself ready to talk to big companies like Lowe’s. Even if your brand may not be a fit for Lowe’s, you will come out of the Into the Blue Pitch event a better entrepreneur than when you entered.”
Click here for details on upcoming Into the Blue events. This page will be updated as plans are finalized.