Kingfisher’s total sales rose sharply by 61.9%
Kingfisher (LON:KGF), owner of B&Q and Screwfix, announced on Wednesday that its sales reached £3.4bn as lockdown restrictions encouraged people to take on the challenge of carrying out their own home renovations.
The company’s total sales rose sharply by 61.9% during Q1 to the end of April.
Specifically, B&Q saw its sales jump by 82.7%, bringing in £121.2m, while Screwfix made £615m, as consumers made preparations ahead of the summer.
Despite its strong sales, the FTSE 100 company said its supply chains were severely disrupted by the container blocking the Suez Canal back in March.
Kingfisher said that “reflecting continued strong demand” Q2 like-for-like sales were now forecast to be up by 8.2%, while it expected H1 sales growth to be in the “mid-to-high teens” – ahead of previous expectations of “low double-digit” growth.
Kingfisher also anticipates full-year 2021-22 adjusted profit before tax to be in the region of £580m-£600m, ahead of its previous forecasts.
Thierry Garnier, chief executive officer of Kingfisher, commented on the company’s results and its next steps.
“We continue to see high levels of demand from both new and existing customers, with clear progress made on our ‘Powered by Kingfisher’ strategic priorities, especially in four key areas,” said Garnier.
“Firstly, e-commerce continues to be our fastest-growing channel with two-year growth of over 250%, now accounting for 21% of Group sales. During the quarter we established a new agile operating model for our technology and digital teams, and further strengthened these teams with multiple new hires.”
“Secondly, we are excited to have launched Screwfix as a pure-play online retailer in France in late April. Thirdly, our new own exclusive brand kitchen range is now available in all key markets, with very positive results despite lockdown restrictions.”
“And finally we continue to develop, test and roll out multiple innovative propositions for our customers, with more compact store tests, a new mobile app for Screwfix, self-checkout terminals and our new tool for 3D kitchen and bathroom design. We have also started to roll out our NeedHelp services marketplace in B&Q and Poland.”
The Kingfisher share price is down by 1.33% at early morning trading to 371.30p per share.
