Spanish DIY retail sales increase by 71 per cent in the second quarter

Hardware and DIY retailers in Spain increased their sales by 59.8 per cent in the second quarter of the year as compared with the same period in 2020. The Spanish association AECOC attributes this high growth rate to the statistical base effect also, as most businesses not deemed to be essential were closed for weeks a year ago on account of the pandemic. Sales are nonetheless 25 per cent above the corresponding level in 2019.
The increase in 2021 as compared with 2020 is particularly large in the case of home improvement stores. Sales here are up by 70.8 per cent, although they were also closed for longer in 2020 than many speciality stores, which were permitted to remain open with a retail area of less than 400 m². Growth in the speciality trade in the second quarter is 21.3 per cent.
"The sector maintains the good figures recorded since the reopening of the establishments, this time boosted by the good results of the garden campaign and summer products," says Alejandro Lozano, who is responsible for hardware and DIY at AECOC. "It is to be expected that growth will slow down in the second part of the year, due to the comparison with the exceptional results achieved in the second half of 2020."