It looks like DIY habits are changing, at least in the UK. Increasingly, home owners tend to pay qualified professionals to handle their home improvement. Kingfishers Plc, the international DIY retailer, ought to know that and as a result, is adapting its offer. Kingfishers owns several DIY brands: Koçtas in Turkey, Castorama and Brico Dépôt in France and B&Q and Screwfix in the UK.
B&Q sells home and garden supplies, mostly to private customers. Screwfix sells tools as well as electrical and plumbing equipment through its 412 stores in the UK, to tradesmen principally. B&Q sales are decreasing while Screwfix's are growing, so its seems logical to adjust the strategy.
The closure of 60 B&Q outlets will occur within the next two years. As for the Screwfix network, Kingfishers wants to expand it with no less than 200 additional stores, with the opening of 60 by the end of the 2016-2017 financial year.
Photo: kingfisher.com
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