Nil German participation

Sylvia Herzog
DIY in Europe Germany
Brussels in late September provided the venue for representatives of the European DIY sector to meet and swap know-how and opinions during the first-ever two-day Fediyma Forum. High-calibre speakers from both commerce and industry demonstrated to the delegates possible scenarios for the future development of the sector, complemented by strategies and ways of solving the problems involved.
The managerial staffs of medium-sized manufacturing concerns were particu-larly well represented. These delegates had the opportunity to make contact with representatives of the European DIY retail trade, meeting trading partners from France, the United Kingdom, Belgium and Finland. Only one nationality did they look for in vain: the Germans were conspicuous by their absence. Not one representative from the head offices of Germany’s DIY groups made it to the first Fediyma Forum, and it is regrettable that Harald Lux, chairman of OBI’s executive board, also cancelled his participation as a guest speaker.
So a DIY forum for Europe is staged – and the German DIY retail scene as a body refuses to have any part in it. Aren’t the managers in the head offices of German DIY retail groups interested in the progress of the sector in Europe and the challenges this presents? That is highly unlikely, since the Germans lead the field when it comes to expansion into foreign markets. But it is possible that they are simply not interested in any more information, since they are already well informed about everything of any importance. And nobody seems really to want an exchange of opinions. Why should anyone bother to meet with European colleagues and make use of the opportunity to have a discussion with Castorama boss Jean-Hugues Loyez, to give just one example?