Sales increase through new business

In the first three months of the current year, the centrally-invoiced sales of Hagebau, based in Soltau, rose by 7.3 per cent over the same period last year for a total of € 753.7 mio. However, this sales growth stems mainly from the accession of new members. At the end of March 2006, Hagebau Germany numbered 249 limited partners (last year: 241) with 919 (891) outlets. In Austria, the cooperative-based chain had 40 (40) members with 172 (157) outlets. This means a rise of 43 in the overall number of outlets to 1 091. The number of Hagebaumarkt stores (franchise retailers) remained constant at 284. Centrally-invoiced sales of the Hagebau retail division reached € 233.6 mio, which was 2.5 per cent down. The turnover of the Hagebaumarkt stores went down by 1.9 per cent.