00:00Joining us to discuss generator safety and relief efforts is Kelvin Dedner, Senior Vice President of Supply Chain at Lowe's.
00:07So, Kelvin, first, how does the command center activation operate?
00:12Well, first off, our thoughts and prayers are with all those communities in the path of this storm.
00:19As they prepare their homes, their families, and their businesses for landfall, we want to be there to support them.
00:24Our Lowe's emergency command center has been in activation since yesterday, with more than 50 cross-functional teams working over
00:32170 stores to have the right people, products, and services in place to meet the needs of the customers and
00:39communities that we serve.
00:41Well, power outages are a huge concern with this storm, and it brings the opportunity, unfortunately, for carbon monoxide poisoning
00:48from generators that are placed in the wrong locations.
00:51So, how do your associates prepare to educate people when they come in, especially first-time buyers?
00:58Yes, our Redvest associates are storm-tested, and they're ready to support with tips such as, you know, never use
01:05gas-powered generators in a confined space.
01:09Always use them externally with plenty of ventilation.
01:13Ensuring that you never put them in places like garages or rooms inside of a home.
01:17Just making sure that they have the manufacturer's information as well, and just always there to support them with tips
01:24to make sure they're safe.
01:26How does Lowe's mobilize to help communities after the storm?
01:30Yes, great question.
01:32You know, our teams are at their best when our customers and communities need us the most.
01:36And we have done things such as our tote brigades and bucket brigades where we provide totes and buckets post
01:48-storm that are filled with supplies such as disinfectants, cleaning supplies, water bottles, and masks.
01:54We handed out over 6,000 of those year-to-date following severe tornadoes in impacted areas.
02:01And we're prepared to do that in the areas where they can't get to our stores in the heavily impacted
02:06areas.
02:06You have field teams, you have store teams, and even suppliers.
02:10They all have to adapt to the weather conditions when we're talking about this kind of event.
02:14So, how do you do that?
02:17Yeah, so we have 50 emergency response teams that are ready to go at a moment's notice.
02:24They're voluntary.
02:25They leave their areas, their stores, to go to the impacted areas so we can provide relief to our customer,
02:33relief to our store associates that are actually impacted so they have time to take care of their property and
02:39their families.
02:40And these, we take care of those for as much time as needed, and they're happy to do it.
02:46It's part of giving back and taking care of those as a family.
02:49You mentioned this a little bit, but I know many of your own employees live in the affected area.
02:53So, tell us a little bit more about how the Employee Relief Fund helps them and their families and how
02:59you're supporting associates who may be dealing with their own damage while also helping customers.
03:04Absolutely.
03:05So, that's one of the things I'm most proud of is our Employee Relief Fund, and we challenge all of
03:12our leaders to contribute to that Employee Relief Fund.
03:15And earlier this year, we had a fundraiser concert here at our corporate office in Mooresville, North Carolina, where we
03:22raised over a million dollars to support the needs of our associates.
03:25So, when they're in their time of need, all they do is fill out an application, and we get those
03:31funds to them so we can be there for our associates, so they can take care of their families, and
03:36then be there for the communities that are in need.
03:39All right, Calvin Dedner, Senior Vice President of Supply Chain at Lowe's.
03:43Thank you so much for your time and all of the great information.
03:47All right, thank you so much.
