Owner-occupation

Castorama opened its 17th Russian store in mid-August. The new branch, which is located in Shelkovo in the Moscow area, is the first in this region to be built by Castorama itself on its own land. All the other stores there are rented. The Shelkovo store offers a range of 35 000 articles on a retail space of 9 700 m². John Declerk, general director of Castorama, described the new opening as a clear sign that Kingfisher intends to carry on with its involvement in Russia. Although stores built by the operators themselves tend to suit their requirements better, the company will still continue to rent premises where it is not possible to build them.