Netherlands v. France

Bert HoogelandDIY in Europe HollandThe DIY retail trade is similar to the world of football. After the quarter-finals of the European Championship in the Netherlands and Belgium it looked as though the finals would be between the Netherlands and France. The reality turned out otherwise (sad to say). But a renewed encounter between the two favourites is coming up, though of a different kind this time. Leroy Merlin has purchased a piece of land in Middelburg in the Netherlands. And now the national adversaries, Praxis and Intergamma, are jointly attempting to convince the local authorities and small businesses that the French company has “nothing new” to offer, but will pose a danger to their sales figures. The business community shrug their shoulders, “When the big players arrived, we looked for new channels – and did so successfully. If Leroy Merlin doesn’t come, another one will.” Nobody knows how this game will end. The sole fact is the town of Middelburg’s commitment, made some time in the past, to permit Karwei and Praxis to build larger stores on the new trading estate. It is not possible to ascertain just how official this statement is. What Leroy Merlin will offer in the way of new ideas in a retail centre with almost nothing but furniture, kitchens and carpets is also questionable. And to what extent can a “foreign” group get an economic foothold in a small country with scant possibilities for expansion? However that may be, the Netherlands v. France (or Praxis/Intergamma v. Leroy Merlin) is fast becoming the final of the Middelburg championship. Just as in the European Championship, the home team has perhaps done a good job in the preliminary rounds, but good matches are still no guarantee of winning the actual title...