Profit provided by stores abroad

Baumax recorded a 4.4 per cent increase in sales for a total of € 918.8 mio in the year 2003. However, in the home country of Austria the market leader registered a drop of 1.1 per cent over the previous year’s result for a total of € 501.9 mio. The operating result (EBIT) was up by 5.3 per cent to € 15.5 mio, and the result from ordinary activities increased by no more than one per cent to € 10.7 mio because of the devaluation of the currency in Hungary.
The company saw double-digit growth in central and eastern Europe. Here the current total of 52 outlets generated an increase of twelve per cent to € 416.9 mio. Their proportion of overall sales has risen from 42 to 45 per cent, and is expected to amount to more than half of the total after next year. Whereas the number of locations in Austria is to remain unchanged during this current year, as was the case in 2003 as well, there are plans for two new stores each in the Czech Republic and Hungary, and one each for Slovakia, Croatia and Slovenia. The Austrian group also has an eye on Romania and Bulgaria in the medium term.
The company began the new year with higher rates of growth: overall sales were up by 6.7 per cent to € 184.2 mio in the first quarter of 2004. Baumax has set itself the goal of reaching the billion euro milestone in sales for the complete financial year.