Lowe’s is ramping up its commitment to professional customers with a significant expansion of its online marketplace, aiming to improve procurement flexibility for contractors, facilities managers, and distributors. The move is part of a broader digital transformation strategy designed to better serve business customers who increasingly demand speed, selection, and streamlined purchasing across job sites and supply chains.
Launched in December 2024, Lowe’s marketplace initially focused on broadening product offerings for consumers. But the company is now scaling the platform with trade professionals and institutional buyers in mind—adding deep inventory across pro-relevant categories like power tools, electrical components, commercial fixtures, jobsite storage, PPE, plumbing, and HVAC accessories. Many of these items are sourced from vetted third-party sellers and existing Lowe’s suppliers who now have a new route to the market.
For contractors, the marketplace means access to thousands of additional products that go beyond what’s stocked in stores—without leaving the familiar Lowes.com environment. All marketplace items are eligible for direct delivery, including to job sites, and can be returned at any of Lowe’s more than 1,700 store locations. Purchases also count towards MyLowe’s Rewards, allowing pros to accumulate points and incentives on materials they’d be buying anyway.
“Pros need more than just access—they need predictability and speed,” said Michael McCluskey, vice president of marketplace at Lowe’s. “The marketplace gives them fast access to specialized inventory, while still offering the trust, service, and returnability that Lowe’s is known for.”
For Lowe’s, the marketplace solves a critical logistical challenge: how to expand product assortment to meet specialized trade needs without overburdening store operations or increasing inventory risk. The marketplace enables just that, offering contractors an “endless aisle” of SKUs—from budget-conscious bulk items to premium-grade, job-specific materials—without compromising the core in-store experience.
The retailer is also using the marketplace to create a more efficient and scalable entry point for distributors and B2B suppliers. With the help of Mirakl, a global marketplace technology provider, Lowe’s has built out the backend infrastructure necessary for sellers to onboard, manage their catalogs, and fulfill orders directly. This not only improves time-to-market for suppliers, but also helps Lowe’s maintain quality control through seller monitoring and customer review tracking.
“The ability to serve both breadth and depth of need—without bloating physical stores—is a game-changer for us,” said Seemantini Godbole, chief digital, and information officer at Lowe’s. “Distributors and product manufacturers can now plug into a national platform, while our pro customers get a wider range of reliable, vetted options.”
This evolution is especially important for small contractors and procurement managers who often juggle multiple vendors and fragmented tools. By consolidating purchasing under Lowe’s—across first-party inventory and marketplace sellers—users can streamline workflows, centralize billing, and simplify job costing. The marketplace also integrates with Lowe’s suite of pro-focused tools, including the Lowe’s Pro mobile app and jobsite scheduling services.
The marketplace model gives Lowe’s the flexibility to quickly test new categories, respond to regional needs, and manage product availability in real-time—capabilities that are increasingly essential in the construction and maintenance industries, where delays and sourcing gaps can derail project timelines.
Lowe’s is carefully curating its marketplace participants, working with both emerging and established suppliers. The retailer monitors delivery performance, product ratings, and return behavior to ensure offerings meet professional standards.
As digital transformation reshapes how building professionals work, Lowe’s is positioning its marketplace as a hybrid model that combines the trust and logistics of a national retailer with the reach and specialization of a B2B distributor.
“We’re removing friction from every stage of the procurement process,” said McCluskey. “From discovery to delivery, we’re building a platform that helps pros get what they need—on budget, on time, and without the usual complexity.”
Don’t miss any content from Distribution Strategy Group. Join our list.
