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Bernard Marcus and Arthur Blank founded The Home Depot in 1978.
They dreamed of home improvement superstores.
The first two Home Depot stores were opened in 1979 after the founders secured capital from investment banker Ken Langone.
The company grew fast through the 1980s.
They led Home Depot's first in the Southeast and then nationally—surpassing Lowe's in market share by 1989.
Marcus and Blank instilled a strong corporate culture based on customer service and helping local communities.
Their principles steered the company's dedication to employees and establishment of The Home Depot Foundation for charitable community growth.
Today, Home Depot generates over $100 billion in annual revenues with over 400,000 employees.
Robert Nardelli became CEO and President of The Home Depot in 2000.
He brought years of corporate experience to the table.
Nardelli led an ambitious expansion plan, rapidly opening new stores and acquiring related supply chains like HD Supply to extend Home Depot's reach.
Under his leadership, revenues and stock prices skyrocketed in the mid-2000s.
However, the board thought Nardelli expanded too aggressively and were disgusted how he treated employees.
After clashes with the board of directors, Nardelli left the company 2007.
While legacy is debated, none dispute the considerable influence Nardelli leveraged in 7 years atop the world's largest home improvement retailer.
His tenure guided rapid growth through acquisition and expansion, even if staff retention issues emerged, before passing the reins.
As a steady hand taking the helm, Frank Blake replaced Robert Nardelli as CEO of Home Depot in 2007. He brought a more collaborative leadership approach aimed to boost staff morale after concerns emerged under Nardelli.
Blake led strategic shifts like divesting HD Supply wholesale and restructuring store operations to sharpen Home Depot’s focus on core retail business through the late 2000s recession.
He also oversaw continued growth into new markets and prioritized environmental initiatives like compact fluorescent light recycling.
Widely praised for his more participative leadership style, Blake steered Home Depot to new heights while navigating challenging economic conditions.
He guided the company across 7 years of consistent growth before passing the CEO title to Craig Menear in 2014, though Blake continued contributing as Chairman of the Board in an advisory role.
Craig Menear replaced Frank Blake as CEO of Home Depot in 2014.
He brought over 30 years of company experience.
Menear has worked in operations, merchandising and vice president positions. So he knew the business well.
Building on Blake’s success, Menear led Home Depot’s continued innovation into integrated digital retail with acquisitions of tech-focused firms like Interline Brands to complement physical stores.
He also oversaw further expansion of distribution centers to grow online order fulfillment capabilities.
Praised for his deep expertise of Home Depot’s business and vision to evolve with shifting retail dynamics, Menear guided the company to consistent annual growth through 2020.
After 8 years governing record revenues, he transitioned the CEO title to Ted Decker in 2022 while staying on as Chairman of the Board in an ongoing leadership capacity.
As a successor picked to usher in the next era, Ted Decker took over from Craig Menear as CEO of Home Depot in 2022.
Decker was a rising executive vice president with years steering profitable retail strategies for the company.
Taking the reins, Decker inherited strong growth momentum yet also faces shifting consumer patterns and economic winds.
He brings expertise in merchant sales, store operations and strategic vision honed from prior division leadership roles.
Decker aims to expand on the company's strengths while adapting its more into e-commerce.
It will be interesting to see where Decker will take The Home Depot next.
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