Increase for Wickes

Wickes, a British DIY retail chain, reports a sales increase of 2.3 per cent to £ 1.003 bn in 2010. Growth of 2.1 per cent was achieved through new openings. The aggregate growth of 3.3 per cent was adversely affected by a 3.1 per cent rate of inflation, which resulted in a like-for increase of just 0.2 per cent, according to figures from parent company Travis Perkins. The core ranges experienced a drop of 2.0 per cent, whereas kitchens and bathrooms show a same-store rise of 9.5 per cent. The number of stores (including one franchise outlet in Ireland) grew to a total of 201 through the addition of five new kitchen and bathroom showrooms. Now the group is expecting its retail division to report a like-for-like increase of 7.0 per cent for 2011 as a whole, following like-for-like growth of 12.0 per cent in January and 1.7 per cent in February.