Lowe’s Companies Inc., the home improvement retail juggernaut, has always prided itself on appealing and adding value to its vast customer base through quality products and market-leading prices.

Now, the company is taking proactive steps to bolster its omnichannel approach, with Dell Technologies Inc. as a core partner.

“What [Michael Dell] talked about was that today it’s the public/private cloud within the data centers,” said John Dabek (pictured, right), senior director of infrastructure at Lowe’s. “It’s the edge, and the edge has become very, very important for us, because that’s where we want to put all of our technologies in the store, closer to the store.”

Dabek and Alison Biers (pictured, left), director of global marketing for edge solutions at Dell, spoke with industry analysts Dave Vellante and Lisa Martin at the recent Dell Technologies World event, during an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s livestreaming studio. They addressed Lowe’s commitment to edge technologies as a key to maintaining its market positioning. (* Disclosure below.) 

Leveraging Dell for that edge-computing pixie dust

The extension of compute and storage capabilities to the edge has become imperative for companies to stay competitive, according to Biers. This notion is especially pertinent in a field like retail, where the margins are slim and customers can be fickle.

Companies like Lowe’s have to balance the satiation of perceptive buyers looking for quality and convenience with a complex business model in a changing landscape. Dell’s VxRail has been that answer for Lowe’s.

“When you talk about modernizing at a fast pace, the first 600 stores that we did with VxRail, we did in three months with the help of Dell. The main goal was zero disruptions in the store. Now we’re talking about 100,000+ square-foot stores, so big stores, and we have a very short window,” Dabek explained.

In addition, the pandemic exponentially increased the value of Lowe’s contractor-facing operations. To maintain pace and create convenience there, the company leaned on edge yet again.

“We have 140,000 mobile devices deployed in our stores for our employees that can do everything from finding merchandise, taking and receiving calls. They can take the device and do a checkout instead of you having to come into the store and then go out again,” Dabek stated.

Here’s the complete video interview, part of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of the Dell Technologies World event:

(* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for Dell Technologies World. Neither Dell Technologies Inc., the sponsor for theCUBE’s event coverage, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE