Just under previous year's level

The German DIY and building stores achieved gross sales of € 17.55 bn in 2008, or 0.5 per cent less than the previous year (2.0 per cent like-for-like). This is revealed by a BHB/GfK report, which takes into consideration stores with a minimum covered sales area of 1 000 m². The greatest increases are on record for the decorative product ranges such as bathroom fittings in the plumbing/heating segment (+4.9 per cent) and garden decoration under garden furniture and décor (+1.9 per cent). Home fashions also experienced a slightly positive trend (+0.5 per cent), as did building materials/chemicals, and garden hardware as well. None of the other ranges managed to reach the previous year's sales level. There were definite decreases for leisure/hobbies/handicrafts (-13.4 per cent), tools and machines (-4.7 per cent) and occasional or self-assembly furniture (-4.1 per cent).