Austrian DIY stores in the black

The large-format DIY and building stores in Austria generated a gross turnover of just over one billion euros in the first half of 2011. Sales were up 2.7 per cent by comparison with the previous year. The current figures from the Austria Report produced by the BHB, a German industry association, and the GfK market research company, show that practically all product ranges saw positive development. It was the specialist garden sections that provided the powerful impetus, as in previous years. The report also mentions a sales increase of 7.4 per cent for the building materials category, especially the classic building elements like doors, windows and gates. Only the month of June lagged behind the retailers’ expectations.