DIY stores in Germany grow by 7.8 per cent in 2022

DIY and home improvement stores in Germany increased their total turnover by 7.8 per cent in 2022, with a volume of EUR 21.92 bn. On an adjusted basis, sales grew by 7.2 per cent. Due to inflation of 6.9 per cent on an annual average, real growth was 0.9 per cent. These figures were announced by the German industry association BHB. Franz-Peter Tepaß, a member of the board at Obi and spokesman for the BHB board, emphasised: "In real terms, we grew slightly better than inflation." He also pointed out that the average annual growth from 2019 to 2022 was above the inflation rates of these years and amounted to 4.0 per cent.

Not all product ranges participated in the growth, however. Some product groups from the garden sector declined. As the largest product group (EUR 2.57 bn), construction chemicals/building materials grew by 9.9 per cent, while seasonal goods lagged the furthest behind the previous year.

According to Tepaß, the first two months of 2023 had been "in line with expectations". "We are at the level of last year," he said. March, on the other hand, was extremely difficult to evaluate because of the poor and variable weather, he said. For 2023 as a whole, he expected sales growth above the inflation rate. However, due to the high stock levels of seasonal goods, especially from the garden range, there would be high discounts for customers, Tepaß believed.