FIRST LOWE'S HOME IMPROVEMENT STORE OPENS IN ALBERTA

Lowe's celebrates with $45,000 donation to United Way of Calgary and Area;
two additional Calgary locations to open in fiscal 2011  

TORONTO, Sept. 21 /CNW/ - Continuing its growth in the Canadian marketplace, Lowe's Companies Canada, ULC (Lowe's), opened the doors to its first Western Canada store today in Rocky View, a northern suburb of Calgary, Alberta.  

The state-of-the-art home improvement store, located at 261199 Crossiron Boulevard, provides 103,000 square feet of retail space and an additional, adjacent garden center of 31,600 square feet. Featuring over 40,000 different products to help customers build, improve and beautify their homes, the store represents an investment of $20 million in the community and the creation of over 160 new retail positions.

"Today marks the beginning of Lowe's expansion into Western Canada," says Alan Huggins, president, Lowe's Canada. "With our new Crossiron store, Lowe's is bringing outstanding products, services and customer service, in addition to significant economic and community investment to the Calgary area."

As part of its investment in the community, Lowe's will provide the United Way of Calgary and Area (UWCA) with a $45,000 grant and work with them to create 'Day of Caring' opportunities that enable employees to volunteer on improvement projects in their communities.

"When we unite we can create a better future," says Huggins. "Being involved and strengthening the communities we work in is an important element of every one of Lowe's stores. We are very proud to contribute $45,000 to the United Way of Calgary and Area today."

UWCA will distribute Lowe's contribution to each of the three Calgary communities where Lowe's will open - the first $15,000 of the grant will be dedicated to agencies and initiatives in the Airdrie community, while the remaining $30,000 will be split between projects in communities close to the McKenzie Towne and the Sunridge area stores. Specifics on the projects will be announced at the time of the respective store openings in early 2011.

Lowe's Western Canada expansion plan also includes future stores in Edmonton, British Columbia and Regina, Saskatchewan. Offering comprehensive benefits for full-time and part-time positions, Lowe's continues to hire employees for new locations. For more information, visit www.lowes.ca/careers 

ABOUT LOWE'S CANADA:

Founded in 1946 and based in Mooresville, N.C., Lowe's is the second-largest home improvement retailer in the world, serving approximately 15 million customers a week in its more than 1,700 stores in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Lowe's Companies Canada, ULC first opened Canadian stores in December 2007 and now operates 17 stores in Ontario and Alberta with more than 2,800 employees company-wide. In 2005, Lowe's announced plans to open its first stores in the Greater Toronto Area, with as many as 100 stores across Canada over time.

For further information:

Joanne Elson
Lowe's Canada
416-730-7475
[email protected]