There is nothing better than the feeling of doing something yourself. Fix something broken or build something new. Remember when you were a kid and went to the store alone for the first time and how proud and accomplished you felt. As adults, we feel similar feelings when we build a piece of furniture or repair something broken in the house.
It’s an amazing sense of independence and purpose. My husband and I spent countless hours building our house together, and not only did we create a lovely home, but our relationship grew closer. Unfortunately, these days, people have less time or resources to spend on home renovations.
Home Depot and Lowe’s, two major home improvement giants, have both seen a decline in foot traffic, especially in the first half of 2025. Foot traffic at Home Depot and Lowe’s dropped 3.5% year over year in the first quarter due to “the housing downturn and other economic headwinds,” according to Placer.ai.
Todd Campbell, a veteran Wall Street analyst and co-editor-in-chief of The Wall Street Journal, explained that while things improved for the two major home furnishing retail chains in the second half of the year, overall fewer people visited such stores “due to higher prices, job losses and rising interest rates.”
In November 2025, Campbell wrote that Home Depot was under pressure due to changes in customer behavior, such as:
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Fewer visits: Foot traffic is down.
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Project scale: Instead of undertaking large, luxurious renovations like a complete kitchen remodel, homeowners are sticking to small, necessary repairs or DIY projects.
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On a tight budget: High mortgage rates and the rising cost of living are making it harder for people to get loans like a home equity line of credit (HELOC) to pay for major home improvements.
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Value focus: Customers are more focused on looking for deals and high ROI (return on investment) upgrades than purely aesthetic upgrades.
To address all of these challenges, The Home Depot just made two major strategic moves, increasing high-tech availability through AI-driven project planning and improving on-site convenience through a partnership with Wahlburgers.
Home Depot is rolling out an AI-powered bill-of-materials generator and adding Wahlburgers food trailers outside some stores.Alex_video70/Shutterstock.com · Alex_video70/Shutterstock.com
The home improvement king announced on January 26 that it will launch new Material List Builder AI to help professional renovators, builders and professional tradesmen create actionable project materials lists in minutes.
The new feature uses artificial intelligence technology to interpret project intent and generate a grouped list of materials needed for the entire job.
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Natural language: Users can describe the project in plain English, for example: “We are remodeling the master bathroom, replacing the double vanity with a more modern vanity, adding new recessed lighting, two new mirrors, and a new toilet.”
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Speech to text: Contractors can create lists hands-free.
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File upload: Professionals can copy and paste existing lists directly from spreadsheets, text, emails, note-taking apps, or other documents, and artificial intelligence will automatically identify matching Home Depot products.
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Getting Started Template: For common jobs like bathroom renovations, kitchen renovations or deck installations, AI provides a pre-made foundation.
Source: Home Depot
“Professionals often tell us that their most valuable resource on any job is time, so we’re focused on delivering solutions that enable professionals to work smarter and faster. Material List Builder AI generates reliable, comprehensive job lists in a fraction of the time it would take to complete the process manually, so professionals can then spend more time focusing on customers and the job at hand,” said Mike Rowe, executive vice president of Professionals at The Home Depot.
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The Home Depot has always prided itself on providing expertise beyond standard retail services. In fact, its professional reputation is built on a well-thought-out strategy of hiring retired businessmen.
In 2004, Home Depot became the first major retailer to form a national partnership with the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), The Seattle Times reported.
However, recent comments on platforms such as retirement.jobs suggest that has changed in recent years, with some older workers claiming the company has started recruiting younger staff.
The latest strategic move shows Home Depot aiming to rebuild its experiential authority and leverage modern technology to take it to another level.
“Customers expect retailers to be the authority on their home improvement projects, and this level of customer service needs to carry over to AI-driven interactions,” Jordan Broggi, online president and executive vice president of customer experience, told CX Dive.
By automating the list-making portion of the project, Home Depot hopes to gain more loyalty from professionals who want to spend less time in the aisles and more time on the job site.
It’s not the only key move Home Depot is making this year to increase foot traffic and reassert its dominance in home improvement retail.
On January 26, Wahlburgers, the popular burger brand founded by Hollywood actor Mark Wahlberg and his brothers Donnie and Chef Paul, announced the opening of new high-traffic locations and the expansion of strategic partnerships, including one with Home Depot.
While Home Depot almost always carries food, these are usually local hot dog stands, making these Wahlburgers trailers a modern, upscale version of the old-school hot dog stands that regular customers remember from the ’90s.
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Food trailer: Instead of building a full restaurant inside the store, Wahlberg deployed custom food trailers outside the store.
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Currently available: The pilot program has launched in three Florida locations (Rockledge, Stewart and Vero Beach), with major nationwide expansion planned for 2026.
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Target: For Wahlburgers, it’s part of a growth strategy to serve customers where they already spend their time, whether that’s a hardware store or an airport. For Home Depot, however, the goal is to improve on-site convenience for customers.
Source: Wahlberg
Industry experts agree that these two latest initiatives should serve the needs of today’s consumers well.
“The Home Depot is leaning toward experiences in smart ways,” RTMNexus CEO Dominick Miserandino said in a statement to TheStreet. “AI tools make projects easier, but the Wahlburgers trailer gives people a reason to actually come in and spend time. Foot traffic is down, which shows that if you want shoppers to come back, you need to give them something they can’t get online. Consumers want experiences.”
More retail:
Recent industry data confirms that consumers are no longer reluctant to use AI-assisted shopping. In fact, according to December 2025 data from Capital One Shopping, 71% of consumers want to shop with the help of generative AI.
Additionally, Deloitte’s 2026 Retail Global Outlook suggests that by 2026, “retailers may face a structural shift toward value pursuits and thinking about what is a fair price.”
To compete in a value-driven environment, retailers should evaluate their consumer propositions in terms of price, quality, experience and trust factors.
Deloitte concluded: “The winners in this new era are likely to be those who invest in technology-enabled capabilities that help brands improve quality, attitude and trust, and create personalized experiences that provide value for money.”
With these two strategic moves, Home Depot aims to provide more efficient and welcoming service, which could be a winning ticket.
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This article was originally published by TheStreet on January 28, 2026, and first appeared in the Retail section. Click here to add TheStreet as your preferred source.
