Lockdown DIYers push B&Q owner Kingfisher past £1bn profit
Kingfisher’s sales shot up last year as the B&Q owner became the third UK retailer to exceed £1bn profit.
The home improvement behemoth joined retail titans Tesco and Marks & Spencer when it revealed its profits had reached record levels on Tuesday.
Lockdown DIYers sent sales past £13bn for the year to 31 January, thanks to the company expanding its online outreach.
Sales surpassed £4bn for B&Q while Screwfix opened 70 new stores in the UK and Ireland.
However, boss Thierry Garnier warned that “the macroeconomic and geopolitical environment is uncertain” for the year ahead.
When looking ahead to the next financial year, Kingfisher said the pandemic had established longer-term trends that would fuel the home improvement sector.
The company listed “the renewed importance of the home, more working from home, and the development of a new generation of ‘DIY’ers’” as enduring trends.
It hiked staff wages 6.5 per cent at B&Q and 5.4 per cent at Screwfix, in addition to relaunching a share plan where staff can receive one share for each one they buy.
The company said it was returning more than £550m to shareholders, including dividends and an ongoing £300m share buyback.
Shares were down more than five per cent on Tuesday evening.