Beyond the 3 000 mark

The year 2004 was not an exceptional one for the French DIY market. Still, it did see an increase in the number of DIY stores, which resulted in the 3 000 mark being surpassed. The big chains above all continued to expand.
The DIY stores increased their number of locations in 2004 by 2.7 per cent to 3 054, according to the latest study from Unibal. Sixty new stores opened, rather than the 53 in the year 2004. Retail area grew by 6.3 per cent to 6.705 mio m².
The number of DIY stores between 300 m² and 1 000 m² in size is in decline. There were no new openings in 2004, and total area fell by 1.5 per cent. However, this store profile still represents the biggest share of all outlets at 40.8 per cent, though it accounts for no more than 10 per cent of total area. Things went better for DIY stores between 1 000 m² and 2 500 m² in size, which were up by 4 per cent in terms of outlets and 4.6 per cent in area. Still larger stores from 2 500 m² to 5 000 m² recorded 16 new openings, which amounts to 7 per cent growth in outlets and 7.4 per cent in area. The number of stores from 5 000 m² to 7 500 m² went up by 11.8 per cent (7 outlets) and the figure for stores in excess of 7 500 m² was 5.3 per cent (7.3 per cent in terms of area).
Top spot in the French DIY store league table is taken by the Leroy Merlin group, which is positioned with several different formats: Leroy Merlin (gross sales of € 3.2 bn in France) in the large-format category, Obi and Weldom (50 per cent participation since 2003) in the medium-sized category, and Bricoman (17 outlets) serving the discount channel. Castorama is working on a new generation of DIY stores, which is starting up at Bourgoin-Jallieu. Kingfisher’s engine of growth is Brico Dépôt, however, which is now opening stores in excess of 10 000 m² (the former Castorama in Bourges).
It was a difficult year for the Mr. Bricolage group (gross sales: € 1.717 bn), which had problems with logistics. By contrast, the year 2004 was a positive one for Bricomarché (gross sales: € 1.75 bn). This group has continued to expand its Logimarché concept for small catchment areas. The year was equally good for the Bourrellier group (gross sales: € 437 mio), which insists on a strict separation between its two channels, Bricorama and Batkor, especially where buying is concerned. Le Club has further expanded Les Briconautes and Les Jardinautes and also developed a low-price concept for its DIY stores in 2004 called Les Econautes. Bauhaus has completely…