Scotts Named 'Partner of the Year' by Home Depot
MARYSVILLE, Ohio, Sep 17, 2003 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX/ -- The Scotts Company (NYSE: SMG), the global leader in the consumer lawn and garden market, announced today it has been named "partner of the year" in the lawn and garden category in 2003 by The Home Depot for its commitment to growing the category, as well as its interaction with customers.
"We've worked hard to build the strongest relationships possible with all of our retail partners, including The Home Depot, and we're very proud to be recognized as their partner of the year in the lawn and garden category," said Jim Hagedorn, chairman and chief executive officer of Scotts. "It sends a strong message when the world's largest retailer of lawn and garden products recognizes the world's largest supplier to the category for its commitment to growing this business. I believe our success at Home Depot also is due to the strength of Home Depot's team itself, which is continually working with us to improve the lawn and garden experience for their customers."
Hagedorn said the Company's Home Depot business development team, based in Atlanta and led by vice president Paul Duval, has been innovative in developing programs to help The Home Depot increase the productivity of its lawn and garden department. He also credited Scotts' sales force and team of in-store counselors for the award. Those counselors, who are Scotts associates, work in stores on weekends to help consumers better understand the lawn and garden category and direct them to the products they need to help create the best lawn and garden possible.
"Scotts earned this award due to their great store service and excellent customer interaction," said Steve Jansen, Merchandising Vice President for the lawn and garden category at The Home Depot. "Scotts continually works to align their goals with those of The Home Depot through excellent store execution, associate training and event planning."
Earlier in the year, Scotts was named "supplier of the year" in the lawn and garden category of Wal*Mart.
"All of us at Scotts are proud that the two largest lawn and garden retailers in the world have recognized us as their vendors-of-the-year in lawn and garden," Hagedorn said. "However, our goal is to receive this recognition from all of our retail partners, from the largest retailers to independents. We are committed to offering each of them the highest levels of service possible while providing their shoppers the best products in the lawn and garden category."
About Scotts
With 2002 sales of $1.76 billion, The Scotts Company is global leader in the consumer lawn and garden market, with a full range of products for professional horticulture as well. The company owns the industry's most recognized brands. In the U.S., the company's Scotts(R), Miracle-Gro(R) and Ortho(R) brands are market leading in their categories, as is the consumer Roundup(R) brand which is marketed in North America and most of Europe exclusively by Scotts and owned by Monsanto. Scotts LawnService(R) also is the No. 2 company in the "do-it-for-me" lawn service market. In Europe, Scotts' brands include Weedol(R) Pathclear(R), Evergreen(R), Levington(R) Miracle-Gro(R), KB(R), Fertiligene(R) and Substral(R).
About The Home Depot (R)
Founded in 1978, The Home Depot(R) is the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer and the second largest retailer in the United States, with fiscal 2002 sales of $58.2 billion. The company employs approximately 315,000 associates and has 1,618 stores in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, eight Canadian provinces, and Mexico.
SOURCE The Scotts Company
Rebecca J. Bruening, Vice President, Corporate Treasurer, +1-937-578-5607, or Jim King Director, Investor Relations-Corporate Communications, +1-937-578-5622, both of The Scotts Company
http://www.scotts.com