Bunnings continues to grow

Bunnings, the Australian DIY and builders’ merchant chain, recorded sales of AUD $ 2.198 bn between October and December 2012, which was the second quarter of its current financial year. That is 6.6 per cent more than for the same period the year before, and 4.2 per cent more in like-for-like terms. The company completed the six months from July to December with sales amounting to AUD $ 4.010 bn, which represents growth of 5.7 per cent. The like-for-like increase was 3.4 per cent – despite the flat housing market, as the company mentions emphatically. During this period seven stores were opened in the group’s Warehouse format and two were closed down, so that there were 211 branches in operation in Australia and New Zealand at year’s end. In addition there are 62 smaller Bunnings stores (five openings and one closure) and 37 specialist trade outlets (three openings and two closures).