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In my gas station video
I mentioned that Americans love do it yourself
I think the best example to show you how enthusiastic they are is through home improvement store
so I take you to Lowe's
and there is another similar store Home Depot
they are the two oligopolies in this business
the products they carry are in the same catogories
Let's take a look what home improvement is
If I have to translate "home improvement" into Chinese
I will use the word"装修"
which meaning close to remodeling or finishing
Home improvement has broader meaning than"装修"
even adding another storey of house will also consider as home improvement
I shot this video at Lowe's
Lowe's has a slogan
"never stop improving"
let's take a look what they carry
and how they are going to use them
the first time I step into Lowe's
It was admiring
How could this kind of retailing stores exist on our planet?
Business to Customer
will carry these kind of stuff
and people really buy them
This aisle we are walking through is insolation product
there are insulating blanket on the left
ladders on the right
Lowe's had never expand their business to China
But, Home Depot once had branch in China
Its Chinese name was 家得宝
they lasted for about 2 years then shut down completly
backed off Chinese market
Chinese consumers don't have the demand of home improvement
at least, our house is way much smaller than American's
and it saved a lot of work
on the other hand
the labor in China is cheap
if we have problem with plumbing, electricity
we can afford to call the guy
I always curious: Does American love DIY or they don't have choice but to do it yourself
Most American families live in single house
it's larger
and come with yard
from the indoor work to yard work
most people will choose to DIY
some keen enthusiasts even built their house from scatch
The lumbers you see right now are used for building houses
treated lumber, wouldn't rotten
this big machine is used for cut the lumber
If you bought a big piece of lumber, they can help you cut it
large polywood
look at the shopping cart
designed for large lumber
There are not much tall residential buildings in North America
beside the foundation and main frame which are made of concrete
the walls and the others are all built of wood
so the houses are not sould proof well,too
those are rebars
those bags are cement
on the right, are the materials used to build decks
these are tools
air compressor
saws
drills
these are grinders
maybe they use them to sharpen something
there are a lot of things I don't know how to use
only you can't think of, nothing they don't carry
levels
difference sized wrenches
screw drivers
accessories
tool bags
knee pads
this wall has socket wrenches
ah, we finally see something normal people would buy
lighting equipement
these purchases are understandable
paints
for interior to exterior
on plasctic, wood
they carry products more than you can think of
At first, I thought they only do home improvement when they need to fix something in the house
then I realized they also improving when there's nothing going on
like paint or do landscape
Here is bathroom supplies
sinks, faucets
cabinets, mirrors
tiles
everything in the bathroom, they carry it
this shelf is for the bathroom faucets
shower heads,etc
you can install by yourself once you bought it home
Everyone had heard that the labor is expensive
I will show you how expensive it is
one KOHLER toilet is priced for $239
If you want the installation service
they charge you $125 for install a toilet
so we installed our toilet by ourselves
sinks, shower room
these are carpets
American loves carpet
I will do an episode about the carpet later
home appliances
refrigerators
you can tell the fridges are big
I think it's the result of big house and spread-out urban planing
so they need big fridge to store more food
because they only able to shop grocery once a week
stoves
washers and dryers
they use a MACHINE to dry their laundary
you can tell how wasty American is
they even use a machine to dry their laundary
Do you only have one cloth? So you can not wait for it to line dry?
America home appliance industry started early
Native brands developed well and they are very compatible on the market
It's very difficult for foreign brand come into American market
I can see Samsung and LG
those are Korean companies
and some German brand
like Bosch
Chinese brand, like Haier, couldn't compete in this market
but focus on low end market
kitchen supplies
cabinets, counter tops and dish washers
you can custom order cabinet here
the next department I will show you is also very American
Garden center
for the yard
If I have to translate into Chinese, I think "苗圃"(nursery)is the closest word
trees and pots
flowers
and vegetable plants, seeds
I took this footage in the spring
Spring is the busiest season
People shops for the flowers for the yard
for decoration
they even have water fountians
beside retailing
They also offer a great kids activity
you can get a set of pre-cut wood
then you nail them together
put on the stickers
home depot offers a similar program
you got to paint the project
you can bring the toy home after you done
completely free!
see, we made a recycle truck
Then I will show you the outdoor section
very American, BBQ
Everyhouse in my neighborhood has this beside my house
They BBQ during the weekend
this is a tiller, which is used to loose the soil
the ones next to the tiller, are lawn mowers
I'm interested, had anyone researched on this question
How much time and energy does an average American family spend on lawn maintenance in a year?
Allright, Thanks for watching
If you enjoy this episode, like the like and subscribe!
see you next time!