Big-Box Retailers Plan for Storms

Walmart was one of the business heroes of the Katrina disaster--providing supplies even when others had their stock depleted or weren't even able to open their doors (see photo below). Walmart has a meteorologist on staff and uses datamining to analyze store-by-store sales so it can plan for storms and other emergency situations.

Not surprisingly, Home Depot and Lowe's, as well as Walmart, were ready for Hurricane Irene, which slammed into the East Coast over the weekend.

"We take storm product, both pre- and post-strike product, we stage those in containers and we have them in our distribution centers, really ready for a driver to pull up and pick up and take them to our stores," a Home Depot official tells National Public Radio.

The big-box retailers coordinate with local emergency centers, check in with FEMA, get their store generators ready, and have emergency supplies on hand for employees.

Home Depot has a "preparing for the storm" page on its Web site. Lowe's has a page with videos and other pages with suggested supplies.

This is where the big-box retailers' contingency planning--preparing for the unexpected, whether hurricane or earthquake or tornado or hail storm--really makes a difference for customers.