In what is now a vision realized, Lowe’s Tech Hub in South End officially opened this week, creating a magnetic, unrestrained destination that uniquely elevates the Lowe’s culture and fosters collaboration.
The Hub enables technology boundaries to be broken so the company may continue elevating the associate and customer experience. As an employer of choice, Lowe’s Tech has an unmatched work environment in the Hub, attracting prospective talent who will help the company continue shaping the future of home improvement retail.
Yesterday, Lowe’s celebrated the grand opening of its Tech Hub, a best-in-class facility in Charlotte’s South End.
Take a look around! pic.twitter.com/TceIUTiiwz
— Lowe’s Media (@LowesMedia) October 19, 2022
Technology plays a critical role in Lowe’s future, Chief Digital and Information Officer Seemantini Godbole told The Charlotte Observer. She said Lowe’s CEO Marvin Ellison emphasizes that great retailers have great technology for employee and customer experiences.
The thriving submarket of South End is an attractive draw for tech workers.
“We wanted to be where they are and be able to attract the best talent,” Godbole told The Observer. “We really feel part of the community here, just by being here.”
The Hub will house approximately 2,400 employees, and was designed around four key creative pillars:
- Build an environment that promotes innovation
- Attract and retain top technology talent
- Prove that technology advancements evolve the Lowe’s brand
- Energize the community by sharing Lowe’s commitment, passion, and culture.
To achieve its creative drivers, Lowe’s found an unconventional space in South End that is vastly different from anything else in the Lowe’s corporate portfolio. The Hub is home to 10 workspace floors arranged in a series of 12 flexible “pods,” five amenity floors, a two-level auditorium, a multipurpose collaboration room, an innovation lab, as well as several game and social hub spaces.
“Everything in the building was done with specific intent to meet the needs of how technologists work and operate,” Randy Alexander, director of technology business management for Lowe’s, told WBTV.
Floor 25, ‘top of the tower,’ includes a large event and activity space that opens onto a rooftop terrace with a spectacular view of the Charlotte skyline. These levels are interconnected by a custom designed four-story monumental staircase.
At the time the Hub’s creation was announced, Ellison said the company was deepening its focus on technology and its commitment to the Charlotte Region.
“We’re excited to stand up our new global technology center here in North Carolina to continue to drive our company’s growth,” Ellison said. “Locating our new facility in the heart of Charlotte, the state’s largest metropolitan area, will enable Lowe’s to attract top technology talent and foster collaboration with our teams in our nearby Mooresville headquarters. This team will create technology solutions that will accelerate our commitment to becoming a best-in-class, omni-channel retailer and strengthen our associate and customer experiences.”
Godbole told the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance® the dedicated technology center will accelerate the Fortune 50 company’s technology transformation, serving as the epicenter for the team that will build future retail experiences as part of a relentless focus on its customers.
“Our new center is going to cover such a gamut of skills, and it’s also going to be a place where talent will be able to find a job that matches their career interests,” Godbole said.
The Charlotte Region enjoys a tech talent pool that is growing twice as fast as the national average, and the availability of a quality technical workforce played a role in Lowe’s decision to choose Charlotte for its new center. In fact, large companies across all industries in the region sought digital transformation in 2020, when hiring in the technology industry was up 15% in Q4 over Q2. For Lowe’s, its new center will offer a bevy of tech positions designed to assist talent in finding jobs that align with their career interests. As an added benefit, Godbole said, its South End location provides an environment that today’s tech talent is looking for.
“Today’s workforce wants to walk to work, bike to work or ride the light rail,” she said. “They want to be able to take a lunch break and pop into neighborhood restaurants. They also want a workplace that has open collaboration spaces that inspire them, and they want the neighborhood around them to do the same. South End — the community, the sense of place, our center — really encourages that type of culture and creativity.”
