Mr. Bricolage turns DIY into an affair of the heart

A new store concept entitled “au coeur de la maison” (“in the heart of the house”) has been announced by the central office of the French cooperative group Mr. Bricolage. The pilot stores at Moulins and Montélimar are expected to open officially on 15 October 2003. Scheduled to be completed before the end of 2004 are about 20 stores offering this concept, which is aimed at increasing the average shopper’s basket of goods. Head office intends to increase the number of corporate stores to 80 by the end of this year. The entire network of sales outlets totals 407 locations. Also belonging to the group since last year’s takeover are 157 Catena stores, seven of which are corporate outlets.