French DIY stores increased sales by nearly 5 per cent in 2020

In 2020, home improvement stores in France increased their sales by 4.78 per cent. Although the growth rate was in double digits every month from May to December apart from November, a drop of 50 and 60 per cent in March and April put paid to a higher rate for the year as a whole.
French DIY retailers ended 2020, year of the coronavirus, with a bang. December saw sales increase by 31.12 per cent compared with the same period in 2019, the highest increase of the entire year. The driver for this was lifting of the lockdown and store closures that lasted throughout November.
The DIY retailers' association FMB published the figures from the Banque de France, chairman Mathieu Pivain commenting that "this renewed upswing confirms the ongoing enthusiasm of the French for DIY since the start of this health crisis".