You’ve probably walked into a Home Depot recently and noticed how strangely easy it is to find a specific oscillating multi-tool. You check the app, it tells you exactly which aisle and bay the tool is in, and if it’s not there, you can have it shipped to a locker by tomorrow. This didn't happen by accident.
It was a blueprint.
Craig Menear, the guy who ran the orange giant for nearly a decade, is the primary reason the company didn't get "Amazoned" into oblivion. While other retailers were panic-buying tech startups, Menear was busy gutting the supply chain. He basically bet the entire farm on the idea that people don't want "online shopping" or "offline shopping"—they just want their stuff.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Menear Era
People tend to look at CEOs as just figures in suits who show up for earnings calls.
With Menear, the story is usually "he was the guy after Frank Blake." But honestly? That’s underselling it. When he took the reins as CEO in late 2014, Home Depot was already successful, but it was fragile. It was a "big box" winner in a world that was rapidly moving away from big boxes.
He didn't just maintain the status quo.
Menear saw something most retail execs missed: the "interconnected" retail experience. Most people think "omnichannel" is just a fancy word for having a website. For Menear, it meant spending $1.2 billion on a supply chain overhaul that most shareholders thought was crazy at the time.
He pushed for "One Home Depot."
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It was a massive gamble. The idea was to merge the digital and physical inventory so completely that the store essentially became a giant warehouse that happened to have customers walking through it. If you’ve ever used curbside pickup at a Depot, you're using a system Menear fought to build years before the pandemic made it a necessity.
The Michigan State Connection and the "Merchant" DNA
Before he was the $70 million-dollar man (his estimated net worth as of early 2026), he was a student at Michigan State University.
He’s a merchant at heart. That’s a specific kind of retail animal. Merchants don't just look at spreadsheets; they care about the "product." Before joining Home Depot in 1997, he put in time at IKEA, Builders Emporium, and Montgomery Ward. He even ran his own independent retail business for a while.
He knew what it felt like to have a customer ask for a specific bolt and not have it.
That "boots on the ground" perspective stayed with him even when he was sitting in the executive suite in Atlanta. He reportedly made it a point to be on a store floor almost every single week of his career. You can’t fake that. Employees can tell if a CEO knows how to handle a pallet jack or if they’re just there for the photo op.
A Timeline of the Rise
- 1997: Joins Home Depot as a merchandising manager in the Southwest Division.
- 2007: Becomes EVP of Merchandising. This is where the real work started.
- 2014: Named CEO, succeeding the legendary Frank Blake.
- 2015: Adds the "Chairman" title to his business card.
- 2022: Steps down as CEO, handing the keys to Ted Decker, but stays on as Chair until later that year.
The "War Games" Strategy
Here’s a cool bit of trivia: Menear used to run "war games."
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Seriously. He would have his leadership team pretend to be rival companies or disruptive startups. Their only job was to figure out how to put Home Depot out of business. They would look at every weakness—slow shipping, bad app interface, poor pro-customer loyalty—and attack it.
Then, Menear would take those "attacks" and turn them into the next year's investment strategy.
It’s why Home Depot invested so heavily in the "Pro" customer. He realized that while DIYers are great, the professional contractors are the ones who keep the lights on during a recession. He focused on making sure a contractor could order 50 sheets of drywall from a job site and have them delivered by dawn.
It wasn't glamorous. It was just smart.
Why He Left and What He’s Doing Now
In early 2022, Menear stepped down.
It wasn't a scandal or a forced ousting. It was just... time. He had steered the ship through the absolute madness of the 2020-2021 home improvement boom. By the time he handed the reins to Ted Decker, Home Depot’s stock had seen incredible growth, and the "interconnected" strategy was no longer a theory—it was the industry standard.
Since retiring, he’s stayed relatively quiet, which is classic Menear.
He remains active with Michigan State (he even has an honorary doctorate from there now) and various Atlanta-based civic groups. His legacy isn't a flashy tech product or a viral marketing campaign. It’s the fact that in 2026, Home Depot is still the place people go when their water heater explodes at 2:00 AM.
He built the plumbing of the company, literally and figuratively.
Actionable Lessons from the Menear Playbook
If you’re running a business—or even just managing a team—there are a few things you can actually steal from how Menear operated.
1. Don't fight the inevitable. Menear knew e-commerce was going to change retail. Instead of trying to "beat" the internet, he used the physical stores to make the internet experience better. If you see a massive change coming in your industry, stop trying to block it. Figure out how to own a piece of it.
2. Focus on the "Pro" user. Every business has a "power user." For Home Depot, it’s the contractor. For you, it might be your repeat clients or your most active subscribers. Give them the most attention because they provide the most stability.
3. Invest in the "boring" stuff. Logistics, supply chains, and inventory management aren't sexy. They don't make for great TikToks. But they are why Home Depot survived while other retailers crumbled. High-quality infrastructure is the only thing that saves you when a crisis hits.
4. Keep your "Merchant" soul. Whatever your core skill is—writing, coding, selling—don't lose it as you move up. Menear was a CEO, but he never stopped thinking like a guy who had to stock a shelf.
The reality is that Craig Menear might not be a household name like Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos. But if you’ve ever finished a Saturday DIY project without having to drive to three different stores, you’ve experienced his work. He proved that "old" companies don't have to die; they just have to be willing to tear themselves down and rebuild from the foundation up.
Next steps for deeper insight:
- Audit your "interconnectedness": Look at how your digital presence interacts with your physical delivery. Is there friction?
- Run your own "War Game": Sit down for an hour and try to figure out exactly how a competitor could take 20% of your business by next month.
- Review your "Pro" strategy: Identify your top 10% of customers and list three ways you could make their lives 50% easier through better logistics.