Lowe's is synonymous with disaster relief, hurricane and tornado recovery, flooding aid, and debris cleanup. Still, there's another category that the company vigilantly prepares for during the winter months: major snowstorms and cold weather events.
Predicting and watching weather formation is critical to an efficient response. Lowe's Command Center partners with AccuWeather and uses thousands of data points to keep up to date with the latest climate information so it can deploy its readiness plan at a moment's notice.
A Nor’easter has already swept across the East Coast, making its mark, and now a highly impactful winter storm is set to bring heavy snow, blizzard conditions, severe storms, and even flooding to a large majority of states in the Central Plains and Midwest, as well as the Eastern Seaboard. Lowe's Command Center is identifying the most vital products that affected communities will need; in this case, that includes ice melt, snowblowers, shovels, and generators. Those products are stocked on trucks in strategic locations, ready to be delivered to communities in need.
“While we have a lot of weather data at our fingertips, it’s critical that we lean on our vast network of associates to assess severe weather impacts at the store and community level,” says Lowe’s Command Center Consultant Candace Gordon. “We are constantly checking in with stores to alert them of incoming severe weather and help them prepare so we can better serve our customers.”
Gordon says Lowe's main goal is to supply customers with everything they need to prepare, withstand, and recover from cold-weather events. That includes working with nonprofit and disaster relief partners like the American Red Cross and Salvation Army to help communities recover in the immediate aftermath of a storm.
Additionally, Lowe’s collaborates with government agencies, insurance providers, and trusted PRO contractors to help communities build sustainable home solutions in the long term.