The Home Depot entered the market as a store for professional and amateur plumbers, electricians, and carpenters. Then it introduced its garden centers. Next came its home design center that provides help with all kinds of interior decorating problems. Now it is enlarging its garden centers and hiring knowledgeable gardeners to staff these centers. The addition of more amenities and greater assortment can be best explained by which of the following?
A) the interconnectedness of the retail life cycle
B) the trend toward disintermediation
C) the success of off-price retailers
D) the wheel-of- retailing hypothesis
E) the 80/20 rule of retailing
Answer: D