Are Home DIYers Getting Smarter?

I consider myself reasonably handy -- drywall, framing, electrical, plumbing (shudder), cabinetmaking. I can do most of them reasonably well (at least if you kind of squint and shake your head really fast when you're looking at my work). Historically when I needed some particularly sophisticated piece of hardware like a really good Freud blade for my table saw or a 100-pack of sandpaper, I had to go to Hardwicks. Now I'm finding things like that at Home Depot. Are home DIYers getting more sophisticated? Or is it simply that a few customers who spend a lot of money at HD need more room on the high end?