Garden beats DIY

Last year the large-format DIY superstores in France increased their garden sales by a nominal 8.6 per cent against the trend of only slight growth in the market as a whole. Growth of 6.7 per cent at constant prices remains after deduction of the rate of inflation to the tune of 1.8 per cent. According to information from the manufacturers’ association UNIBAL, this means the green product ranges are well ahead of the growth rates in the DIY sector. Here the increase came to a nominal 4.8 per cent and 3.0 per cent in real terms.