Profits and sales at B&Q soar

B&Q, the DIY chain owned by Kingfisher, has posted group sales up 6.3% to £970m during the third quarter.

B and Q

Then DIY chain saw like for like sales rise 5.7% in the 3 months to 31 October buoyed by the continued interest in home improvement throughout the recession.

B&Q says sales of big-ticket items were up 11% while kitchens and appliances say 27% growth helped by better merchandising and renovated stores.

Kingfisher group profit was up 26.9% to £1,092m in the UK. Group sales including international operations were up 2.4%.

B&Q launched its biggest ever price promotion this year with a privilege card giving shoppers discounts across the store, as part of a £25m investment into pricing campaigns.

A report from market research company Nielsen last week, showed that homeware chains including B&Q have increased marketing spend in the six months to 30 September after cuts in the previous six months, signalling a slowdown in the decline of ad spend in response to returning consumer confidence.

Ian Cheshire, Kingfisher group chief executive, says: ” Looking ahead, we continue to rely on our own initiatives to drive performance and deliver more value for our shareholders and continue to assume no early help from improved consumer demand.”