I’m putting this out here only for conversation sake, I have no internal knowledge of the Menards operation. Also, I am surrounded by Menards, so I do not and have not had to mail order anything Menards has to offer.
Has anyone ever thought that “mail order” dollars are just not that important to Menards? Realistically speaking, how much big box hardware store items do you mail order during the course of a year?
In my case, I figure out my project (or usually emergency), and if time is available, shop Menards, Lowes and Home Depot. My bet is many of you are in the same situation, shop in person for the actual hardware items you may need.
Also consider, many big box stores have “loss leaders”, meaning an item(s) are sold at or near a loss to gain foot traffic “into” a store in hopes that other, higher margin items will also be purchased. In the case of mail order, what is the incentive to move “loss leaders” to a group of buyers that will not enter the store? Yes, some may buy an additional item, but if I was a betting man, I would think the percentage is extremely small.
So, before we find fault with the Menards operation, consider that they are not shrinking and probably expanding in an otherwise very competitive business sector.
Enjoy your Menards purchases because I’m sure you will not like the alternative.
Charlie
