When Home Improvement Met Electronics, The Forgotten Lowe's Department
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When Home Improvement Met Electronics
The forgotten Lowe's Department
When you think of Lowe's, what's the first thing that you think of? Hardware, right?
Tools, wood planks, fridges & stoves, garden supplies, maybe even some floor tiles?
But what about televisions?
Maybe some VCR's?
You might find a lot of things for your house at Lowe's, but electronics is not one of them... anymore
This Lowe's commercial from 1994 confused me the first time I saw it
Sure, they start off by showing a Christmas tree, some hammers, and a large toolbox display, typical for Lowe's
But "what's with the tv's" was my first thought when I originally viewed the commercial The commercial also features cordless phones and stereos?
Yup, they sold those too apparently
Game systems as well
The Game Boy was released in 1989, but didn't arrive at Lowe's until 1991
Can't forget about the camcorders also
Even though Lowe's is a hardware / home improvement store, they appear to have had a full-blown electronics department at one time
Lowe's electronics display, 1996
Electronics must have played a large part in the Lowe's formula back in the day
Imagine buying a new computer at Lowe's out of all places
They sold electronic-type merchandise for years, too. The ad seen above is from 1972
I'm not sure when exactly the electronics department was removed, but It was last advertised in 1998, so Lowe's stopped selling electronics in or around that time.
I don't know why, but the concept of Lowe's having an electronics department seems kind of odd to me.
What store has a full-scale hardware, appliance AND electronics department
...other than Sears
When I found out Lowe's sold electronics, I thought that they were trying to compete with the likes of Best Buy or Circuit City, but maybe, just maybe, Lowe's was really trying to fight with Sears...
Anyone else find it a bit odd that Lowe's sold any of this in the first place?
My parents purchased a Magnavox TV from them in 1989. I later purchased an entire Pioneer rack stereo that I had until a few years ago when the receiver finally died. Seems like they got out of this in the really early 2000s, because my local store opened June 2000, and it had the section only for a short time.
My parents purchased a Magnavox TV from them in 1989. I later purchased an entire Pioneer rack stereo that I had until a few years ago when the receiver finally died. Seems like they got out of this in the really early 2000s, because my local store opened June 2000, and it had the section only for a short time.
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