Screwfix is set to open 40 new stores over the next year, as it targets 1,000 sites across the UK and Ireland, the latest financial statement from its owner Kingfisher Group has revealed.
Kingfisher’s final results, for the year ended 31 January 2024, show positive UK & Ireland sales, however France and Poland sales were impacted by more challenging consumer backdrop. This led to overall group sales decreasing by 1.8% and LFL down 3.1%.
There was a significant boost in UK ecommerce sales, B&Q’s marketplace helped drive a 17.4% increase in online activity. Kingfisher now intends to launch new ecommerce marketplaces in France and Poland, with the goal of reaching 30% sales penetration from ecommerce, one third of which represents high margin marketplace gross sales.
While in the UK it will look to grow its trade business. It is aiming for £1bn sales at TradePoint UK & Ireland.
Thierry Garnier, chief executive officer, Kingfisher said: “Despite all the macroeconomic and consumer challenges in our markets over the past year, we have stayed focused on our customers and our long-term strategy. I am immensely proud of all our teams for their efforts.
“In the UK & Ireland, B&Q, TradePoint and Screwfix each delivered resilient sales and market share growth – in particular very strong gains at Screwfix.
“We continue to execute against our strategic priorities at pace, with high conviction in our multiple growth opportunities. The success of our marketplaces in the UK and Iberia is well ahead of our expectations, with launches also planned in France and Poland this year. We have continued the international expansion of Screwfix, with 22 stores now open in France and encouraging results so far.”
He added that the group will look to accelerate its data, AI and retail media initiative roll-outs.
“Looking forward, we remain confident in the attractive growth prospects of the home improvement industry and our ability to grow ahead of our markets. In the short term, while repairs, maintenance and renovation activity on existing homes continue to support resilient demand, we are cautious on the overall market outlook for 2024 due to the lag between housing demand and home improvement demand.
“Against this backdrop we will remain agile and focused on what is within our control – leveraging our strategy to deliver market share growth, driving productivity gains, and managing our costs and cash effectively.”
Chloe Rigby recently spoke to Sue Harries, digital, proposition and data director at Screwfix, for an exclusive interview published in the RetailX UK Top500 2024 report. Read the full interview here to discover how the Elite retailer puts the customer firmly at the centre of its strategy – and what that means in practice.
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