The beaver is spreading

The year 2025 brought significant changes to the DIY market in Switzerland. Migros discontinued its Do it + Garden retail chain in the middle of the year. None of its competitors wanted to take it over in its entirety; they were only interested in a few locations.

Obi seized the opportunity and expanded its network of locations. The German DIY chain has announced openings in Stans (3,220 m²) and Steinhausen (3,300 m²) for the end of October 2025. In January 2023, Do it + Garden had presented a new concept at the Zugerland shopping center that was supposed to turn the tide.

By taking over the locations in Nyon and Carouge, the German DIY store group is also strengthening its presence in French-speaking Switzerland. Until now, there was only one location there, the store in Renens, which opened in 2002.

Obi also had only one location in Italian-speaking Switzerland until now, namely the 6,100 m² store in Sant'Antonio, which opened in 2005.

Just 25 km south of there, another location has now been added: since May 2025, the town of Agno in the very south of the country on Lake Lugano has been home to another biotope for the orange beaver from Germany. Store manager Luca Dellapiazza has moved from Sant'Antonio to Agno.

The Italian-born manager, who has been living in Switzerland for 15 years (and speaks excellent German), previously held the position of deputy manager there. He now manages the second Obi store in the canton of Ticino and the first to implement the “Mach-Bar” concept in Switzerland, naturally in Italian and therefore under the name “Brico Lab.” Because it is also the smallest Obi in Switzerland, with 2,618 m² of retail space plus 1,056 m² for the garden department, it can sometimes be a challenge to staff the Brico Lab around the clock, he says. After all, the store has just under 30 employees, and the two cash registers plus the checkout in the gardening department on busy days also need to be staffed when necessary.

The Brico Lab is not the only change Obi has made since taking over the building in Agno. New flooring has been laid in some areas, new tables have been added for presentations, and the lighting has been completely converted to LED.

Obi has fundamentally changed the store layout. There is now…