B&Q to open high street stores
By Sarah Wood | 23rd March 2023
DIY giant, B&Q, plans to open at least 50 small and medium-sized stores across the UK.
Demand is growing for more convenient local stores and B&Q already has eight high street outlets - called B&Q Local - in London, as reported by Retail Gazette.
Owner Kingfisher said it had identified 50 possible locations where it could open either Locals or one of its medium-sized 4,000-5,000 sq metre stores. A B&Q retail park store, like those in Gloucester and Cheltenham, is around 12,000 sq metres.
B&Q had tested out small stores within Asda stores, but announced last month that it was closing them to focus on its high street and medium-sized store formats.
Kingfisher recently reported a 40% fall in pre-tax profits to £611m for the year to January 31, as the end of the lockdown DIY boom hit trade. Sales fell 7% year on year at both B&Q and the group's Screwfix chain in the UK.
Punchline said: "Retail is changing and high street rents have gone right down. Dobbies is moving onto Cheltenham Promenade and there's no reason why B&Q can't secure a prime retail site and do the same."
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