Founded in 1978, The Home Depot is the world's largest home improvement specialty retailer and the second largest retailer in the United States, with fiscal 2003 sales of $64.8 billion. The company employs approximately 300,000 associates and has 1,826 stores in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, eight Canadian provinces and Mexico. The company recently announced the creation of a business development operation for retail expansion into China. Its stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE:HD) and is included in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Standard & Poor's 500 Index.