Several readers wrote in, about reports that Home Depot has cut or “dropped” EGO as one of their cordless outdoor power tool offerings.
Thank you to everyone who wrote in with news of this development!
EGO is one of the best cordless OPE tool brands out there these days, and they rose in ranks as a Home Depot exclusive before broadening their distribution in recent years.
Home Depot made an announcement yesterday, that they will accelerate investments in outdoor power categories, involving a refinement of top brands.
The new move will include a reset that will be executed at approximately 1300 Home Depot store locations by the end of 2020. All stores should have their outdoor power equipment sections reset through spring 2021.
An interview that Home Depot participated in with the Atlanta Business Chronicle, via BizJournals, says:
[Home Depot is] focused on the most relevant brands with the greatest adoption.
If you ask my opinion, EGO has been one of the most relevant brands in the industry, with many “firsts” and constant innovation and improvements.
The BizJournals article adds:
The Atlanta-based retail giant said the four remaining cordless options fit their aim to provide interchangeable batteries among products, and collectively make up the vast majority of platforms already owned by its customers.
I would say that the power and performance of EGO’s higher voltage and larger capacity batteries is largely responsible for their growth and success over the years. The fact that EGO only produces cordless outdoor power tool products has not been a limitation or detractor before, so why now?
Additionally, Products such as EGO’s cordless snowblower are not yet available from competing brands. Ryobi does offer a 40V Max option, but it’s lower powered compared to the EGO.
At the time of this posting, EGO’s cordless snowblower is still available on Home Depot’s website.
The Home Depot investor relations press release goes on to discuss the move as it pertains to discontinuing their relationship with the EGO cordless power tool brand:
The enhanced assortment will include The Home Depot’s top brands of innovative cordless outdoor power – Ryobi, Makita, DeWalt, and Milwaukee – as well as the most trusted brands of gas-powered products in the industry – Toro, Echo, John Deere, Cub Cadet, Honda, and Troy-Bilt.
As part of this merchandise reset, the company has made the decision to discontinue the Ego line of outdoor power equipment.
Earlier in the year, the company began refreshing its presentation of the outdoor power category to make it easier for customers to determine which equipment would best meet their needs. The branded-bay presentation features the latest in battery-powered technologies that have become increasingly popular among DIY consumers and professional landscapers.
Ryobi, DeWalt, Milwaukee, and Makita provide common battery platforms across their industry-leading power tool and outdoor power equipment products, which collectively make up the vast majority of batteries already owned by consumers. This provides customers an array of options and flexibility for their battery powered tools that can be interchanged on the same battery platform.
There was no further clarification as to what the enhanced assortment will involve, aside from featuring cordless outdoor power tools from Ryobi, Makita Dewalt, and Milwaukee tool brands, along with gas-powered offerings from a host of familiar brands.
This is a surprising move, as EGO seems to have been an extremely popular cordless outdoor power tool brand, and no doubt both companies enjoyed success from the exclusivity or near-exclusivity in recent years that their partnership has brought.
