Meet the Arnots, an orange-blooded family who chose to build their careers together at The Home Depot.
The Arnots are so Home Depot-centric that at least 50 guests at a recent family wedding had worn an orange apron at some point in their careers. Not long ago, three generations of the family all worked for The Home Depot at the same time.
The family’s Home Depot connection started with Mary Thiel, who was an associate during the company’s early days. But the one who really launched a lasting Home Depot lineage is Doug Arnot — the first link in a chain that at one time included 13 family members.
Today, Doug works with the Pro division, but his Home Depot career started in 1980 at a store in Marietta, Ga. He was 17 and a junior in high school when his Aunt Mary suggested he try for a job at the fledgling home improvement retailer.
Doug’s Home Depot career took him from lot associate to store manager to his current position as a Pro account representative. He worked in Florida, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania and North Carolina before returning to Georgia. As he grew with the company, he began to tell family members about the culture and the benefits. He encouraged them to join him at The Home Depot, and they did.
A brother, a sister, his mom and his dad all worked for The Home Depot at one time, and The Home Depot chain extends even further into the family:
- His father, Eugene Arnot, a welder and woodworker, turned his expert knowledge of tools into a second career in the aisles.
- Doug’s wife, Rachael Mandy Arnot, works at the Store Support Center in Atlanta. Rachael is the family’s longest continuously serving associate. She tied on her first THD apron in 1982 and never looked back.
- Doug’s daughter Jaki Arnot Hoeflinger works at the Store Support Center, and daughter Jen Arnot Smith works at The Home Depot in Canton, Ga.
- Doug’s niece Jeri Arnot works there, too, and her fiancé, Leigh Martin, has been with the company for 19 years.
- Doug’s sister-in-law Kristen Arnot works at The Home Depot in Roswell, Ga.
When Doug adds up the years of service of family members currently working for The Home Depot, the sum is 126 years. When he broadens the mathematics to include family members who once were associates, the total climbs to more than 150 years.
Meet more associates with Home Depot family connections:
