DIY
DIY covers the latest business developments and trends across the UK home improvement and hardware retail sector. This section reports on trading performance, consumer demand, sustainability initiatives, and supply chain management among leading DIY and home retail brands. Retail Sector’s DIY coverage provides insight into how retailers are adapting to shifts in housing, lifestyle, and economic conditions — offering practical analysis for executives, suppliers, and category managers shaping strategy and operations in this competitive market.
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Oct- 2018 -8 October
B&Q slash 200 management roles to ‘boost shop floor staff numbers’
DIY retailer B&Q has announced proposals to “improve customers’ shopping experience” in stores by moving 1,750 colleagues to shop floor roles. The move will increase the number of customer-facing colleagues in B&Q’s 289 UK stores, but will slash around 200 management roles, with the proposal aiming to move replenishment activities…
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Sep- 2018 -28 September
Unions file complaint against Ikea over ‘workers’ rights abuses’
An international coalition of labour unions is calling for an investigation into supposed “wide-ranging violations” of workers’ rights at furniture retailer Ikea. The complaint, delivered to the Dutch OECD National Contact Point, details failures by Ikea’s global management to curb “vicious anti-union campaigns” in the United States, Ireland, and Portugal.…
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19 September
B&Q owner Kingfisher sees 15% profit slump with H1 results
Kingfisher, which owns DIY retailers B&Q and Screwfix, has reported a 14.8% drop in H1 pre-tax profits, dragged down by “significant weaknesses” with its French operations. Underlying pre-tax profit dropped to £375m in the six months to 31 July 2018, compared with £440m the previous year, and total sales remained…
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Aug- 2018 -31 August
Homebase ‘very likely’ to enter administration if CVA isn’t passed
The future of Homebase is to be decided today as creditors vote on a CVA which would see the closure of 42 stores. Hilco Capital, the DIY retailer’s owner said that the company was “very likely” to enter administration if the CVA is not passed. Some Homebase landlords plan to…
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20 August
Amazon ‘aggressive bidders’ for empty Homebase stores
Retail giant Amazon is looking to purchase empty Homebase stores from new owner Hilco in order to help increase its delivery capabilities. According to the Telegraph the online retailer is seeking to purchase the stores due to a shortage of warehouse stock in the UK, forcing retailers to look for…
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16 August
B&Q owner Kingfisher records Q2 revenue boost thanks to warm weather
Kingfisher, the owner of B&Q and Screwfix, has posted a 1.6% increase in revenue during the three months ending 31 July. The increase was driven by a 3.6% increase in revenue at B&Q’s UK and RoI stores which Kingfisher said benefitted from sales in “weather-related categories”. Screwfix reported a…
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14 August
42 Homebase stores to face the axe
DIY retailer Homebase has announced the closure of 42 stores, resulting in around 1,500 redundancies. The DIY chain has already closed 17 stores after it was bought out by restructuring experts Hilco for £1 in May, and is said to be filing for a CVA. Insolvency advisors Alvarez & Marsal…
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8 August
80 Homebase stores to shutter affecting 1,000 jobs
Homebase will announce the closure of 80 stores next week resulting in the loss of 1,000 jobs. The DIY chain has already closed 17 stores after it was bought out by restructuring experts Hilco for £1 in May, and is said to be filing for a CVA. Insolvency advisors Alvarez…
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Jul- 2018 -31 July
Wickes owner Travis Perkins lowers profit outlook amid ‘challenging DIY market’
The parent company of DIY retailer Wickes, Travis Perkins, has announced that profits “will be lower than previously expected” amid a “challenging DIY market”. For the six-month period ending June 30, Travis Perkins reported a 4.4% increase in revenue to £3.3bn, attributed to good trading performance in the trade-focused businesses…
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27 July
B&Q reinforces commitment to kitchen and bathrooms market
Home improvement retailer B&Q has begun to recruit 800 new colleagues in its bid to further commitment to the kitchens and bathrooms market. The new recruitments will be based at the retailer’s showroom areas to assist customers. The news comes after B&Q recently announced proposals to simplify the way it…
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