Sales and losses grow

The Australian DIY store chain Masters made a sales revenue of AUD 930 mio in the past fiscal year 2014/2015 (end: 28 June 2015). That’s 23.7 per cent more than in the previous year. In the same period, the number of stores was increased by nine to 58. The new stores are the first in a line of new formats. According to the company, their sales revenue is 30 per cent higher than the previous store concepts. In the meantime, three further existing stores have been converted into the new format. Half of the stores should be converted within a year.
However, the Masters’ stores are still making losses. Most recently, the EBIT had a minus of AUD 245.6 mio.
Masters is a joint venture between the US American DIY store operator Lowe’s and the Australian retail group Woolworths. The Australian press reports on further financial support for Masters: AUD 60 mio from Woolworths and AUD 30 mio from Lowe’s. According to the report, both partners have invested AUD 3.22 bn over the past four years in the young DIY chain and lost AUD 604 mio in the process. The break-even point is expected to be reached by 2020. The company still plans to open five to eight new Masters’ DIY stores per year.