B&Q owner Kingfisher reports poor Q1 sales

DIY retailer B&Q has reported a 9% drop in like-for-like sales for the three months to April 30 2018.

According to the group the report reflects an ongoing issue of lowered footfall and soft demand patterns. The adverse weather conditions and temporary snow related store closures impacted B&Q’s like-for-like sales by 6%.

Véronique Laury, CEO of Kingfisher, said: “It was a challenging start to the year with exceptionally harsh weather across Europe and weak UK consumer demand. This impacted footfall, especially sales of weather related categories. February and March were particularly affected with sales improving over the course of April and into May.”

She added: “Market conditions continue to be mixed. The UK is uncertain, as demonstrated by recent weak retail sales data; France is encouraging, but volatile; whilst Poland continues to be supportive.

“We remain confident about delivering the business and customer benefits of our transformation plan, supported by the continued hard work and expertise of our colleagues.”