All of the cheering and singing coming from a large tent in the parking lot of the Lowe’s home improvement store in Gloucester last Thursday was well-deserved, as employees and management celebrated being recognized as the top store in the region.
Store manager Mike Neiss not only enjoyed receiving that honor with his approximately 160 employees, but also was recognized as the region’s top store manager.
Neiss said the Gloucester store, located on Route 17 at Short Lane, was recognized as the #1 store among 107 stores in this region, one of 14 regions that comprise the chain. The award is the result of strong sales, good customer service and engagement, safety and other factors.
In winning the top regional store award, staff was treated to a catered all-you-can-eat barbecue and fixings lunch, music and dozens of prizes donated by local merchants that were given to Lowe’s employees.
The Gloucester store has ranked high for consideration for this special regional award several times, said regional vice president Stacey Ryan, and she kept looking at store figures during 2014 and knew “it’s going to be their year.”
Gloucester has “a great team,” Ryan said, who have worked hard to “knock it out of the park” in terms of good sales and service.
The Gloucester store was also recognized for being accident-free for all of 2014, one of 26 stores in the entire 1,800+ store chain to accomplish that status.
Neiss and Ryan said that spring is a very busy time for Lowe’s, describing it as the company’s Christmas because of so much sales volume as many people need lawn and garden tools and supplies this time of year, as well as tackling home improvement projects.
Lowe’s draws a mixed clientele, Neiss said, as professional contractors and do-it-yourselfers have steadily come into the Gloucester store since it opened 12 years ago, with him heading the store the entire time.
Originally from New York, Neiss resides at Hayes. His wife, Dawn, is manager of the Rite-Aid store in Poquoson.
Based in North Carolina, Lowe’s has stores in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The company was founded in 1946.