Swiss home improvement sector grows by nearly two per cent

DIY retail companies in Switzerland experienced sales growth of 1.9 per cent in the 2018 financial year. Total gross sales rose to a volume of CHF 3.36 bn (around EUR 2.96 bn), while sales on a comparable store area increased by 1.2 per cent. The figures are based on the current market figures of GfK and were published by the BHB, the industry association for the German-speaking countries.
Swiss home improvement stores achieved their highest total annual sales with household goods, garden equipment and plants. Compared with assortment trends in the previous year, the biggest sales increases in 2018 were in the categories of construction components (+5.7 per cent), compost/ seeds/garden chemistry (+5.6 per cent) and garden equipment (5.0 per cent). A significant decline in sales was experienced in the automotive category (-6.6 per cent), but otherwise of the 21 product categories reported in all, only those of plumbing/heating/accessories and leisure/seasonal goods showed a slight decline (-0.4 per cent in each case).