B&Q Suffers As Bad Weather Hits Profits

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 27 Maret 2013 | 00.25

The owner of DIY chain B&Q has reported a sharp fall in profits, partly a result of "record adverse weather" in the UK.

Kingfisher, which is Europe's largest home improvements retailer and also owns Screwfix, said profits fell 11.4% in its last financial year to £715m.

It estimated that the soggy summer of 2012 in Britain took £25m off its earnings.

Wet or cold weather has been widely found to have stifled shop sales at a time when retailers also battled the prolonged squeeze in consumer spending.

Sellers of so-called "big ticket" items such as kitchens and bathrooms, like B&Q, have been particularly vulnerable because people have been reluctant to upgrade their homes amid other spending priorities.

Group sales fell 2.4% to £10.57bn in the year to February 2, with the company blaming weak consumer confidence for like-for-like sales declines in its three key markets of Britain, France and Poland.

BRITAIN-WEATHER-SNOW The prolonged cold snap has hit wider retail sales across the UK

Like-for-like sales in the UK and Ireland fell 5.6% though Screwfix continued to grow.

Kingfisher cited adverse foreign exchange movements, when translating euro and Polish zloty overseas profits into sterling, for knocking £39m off profit.

It said it was offsetting weak demand with a drive to improve profitability by buying more goods centrally from cheaper manufacturing centres such as China.

Neil Saunders, Managing Director of retail analysts Conlumino, said there was a positive for Kingfisher despite its profits decline.

He said: "It is important to underline the fact that B&Q has actually gained share as its own declines have been less than those across the whole market.

"To a large extent this justifies the current strategy of investing in price which helps stimulate spend, defends against discounting activity at competitors and helps to make buying big ticket items like kitchens somewhat more palatable.

"The ongoing moves to make the process of DIY more engaging and interesting, through range and store improvements, has also helped B&Q beat the performance of the overall market."

He concluded: "That said, with the weather over the critical upcoming Easter period looking distinctly gloomy, 2013 looks like it will be another fairly bleak year for the DIY sector."

Recent industry figures have suggested the prolonged winter has impacted severely on shopper numbers as a whole, with not only DIY chains but clothing retailers also feeling the cold as people hold off buying Spring range items.

It remains to be seen whether the decline will have an impact on GDP to the extent it pushes the UK into a triple dip recession.

The Office of Budget Responsibility last week forecast just 0.1% growth in the first quarter of 2013.


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