Ten per cent for Bunnings

The Australian home improvement chain Bunnings ended the first six months of its financial year (July to December 2013) with double-digit growth in sales of 10.4 per cent to AUD 4.434 bn. Like-for-like sales increased by 7.2 per cent. Pre-tax profits (EBIT) rose by 8.5 per cent. Bunnings opened 14 new stores in the reporting period, comprising eleven in the Warehouse format, two smaller stores and one builder’s merchant. At the end of the year, the company operated 218 Warehouse stores, 65 smaller DIY stores and 35 builders’ merchants in Australia and New Zealand; 15 stores were under construction. Since the company has secured a large number of building plots in the last few years, the pace of expansion is expected to be cranked up still further.