When most retailers look for places to open new stores, they take into account economic indicators like job growth and new home building.
Now, some retailers are considering another data point: drilling permits.
Home Depot Inc. has all but given up on opening new stores in the U.S., but the home-improvement retailer made an exception in January to open a store in an area it said it couldn't pass up: Minot, N.D., in the heart of the American shale oil and gas boom.
"If you had said to me seven years ago, you'll be opening a store in Minot, North Dakota, I would have asked, Why?" Chief Executive Frank Blake said in an interview.
"One of the great stories of the U.S. is the shale oil development, and it's happening in areas where we don't have a lot of stores now."
The 100,000 square-foot store is more than a four-hour drive from Home Depot's nearest location and is the only U.S. store Home Depot opened in the fiscal year ended Feb. 2.
Home Depot is among a number of retailers including Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and GameStop Corp. targeting oil and gas towns in North Dakota, Texas and Louisiana, in an otherwise dour environment for retail real estate. The rise in online shopping and decline in foot traffic has led a number of retailers to scale back store construction and the size of the stores they do build.Back in 2007, I sent a letter to Menards in Minnesota and spoke with one of their vice presidents about the opportunity in Williston. I was pretty much blown off. I believe Menards is building in Williston but the store is not yet completed.
A lot of story lines in that article. Enjoy.