Home Depot & Amazon
Amazon has been steadily expanding into Home Depot's home improvement categories through Amazon Business (bulk hardware and MRO supplies), Amazon Fresh (home care products), and third-party sellers offering tools, lumber, and building materials. Home Depot's $164.7B in FY2025 revenue and 2,350 stores provide scale Amazon cannot easily replicate for large, heavy items like lumber and plywood.
Why it matters: Home improvement is the last major retail category where physical store proximity matters enormously: a contractor needs drywall tomorrow, not in two days. Home Depot's network of stores acts as same-day fulfillment centers for professional customers. Amazon's challenge is the last-mile logistics of heavy, bulky items that are expensive to ship.