Closures cost sales

Rona, the Canadian market leader in the home improvement sector, also concluded the second quarter with a drop in sales. The volume was 4.6 per cent down on the comparable period last year to C $ 1.249 bn. The company says that the fall is for the most part due to the closure of stores; it amounted to one per cent in like-for-like terms. Rona’s sales in the wholesale segment were 4.9 per cent down, and 4.4 per cent in the retail division. This means a sales decline of 3.2 per cent to C $ 2.081 bn for the first six months. Like-for-like sales were 1.1 per cent lower. While the wholesale results remained stable, the retail sales figures were 4.6 per cent down.