Slowing-down of sales decline

The German Praktiker Group achieved net sales of around € 695.9 mio in the final quarter of 2012. That was 2.7 per cent less than the previous year. The company’s decline had been as much as 6.5 per cent in the first nine months. Altogether sales in the 2012 financial year came to some € 3.004 bn, or 5.6 per cent less than the previous year. In Germany fourth-quarter sales of around € 502.4 mio were 1.4 per cent down on the previous year, which reflects in particular the closure of eleven Praktiker stores. As a result of this, and of the conversion of a further 27 stores to the Max Bahr format, sales of the Praktiker channel of distribution went down by 5.5 per cent. This contrasts with Max Bahr, where sales saw an increase of 8.9 per cent. The entire domestic business yielded an increase of 0.3 per cent in like-for-like terms. Sales abroad of some € 193.5 mio in the whole of the fourth quarter missed the previous year’s total by 6.0 per cent. In 2012 overall Praktiker recorded sales of some € 811.3 mio abroad, or 9.3 per cent less than the previous year.