Mr. DIY sees first-quarter sales flagging because of Omicron

Mr. DIY saw a modest rise in first-quarter sales as weak consumer spending resulting from a fresh surge in coronavirus cases last February tempered the contribution of additional selling channels. Malaysia's dominant home improvement store chain disclosed a four-per cent sales uptick for the period to 905.163 mio Malaysian ringgit (MYR, around EUR 195.96 mio). This was despite support from 47 new stores opened during the quarter and the Lunar New Year, a major holiday in the country. “The emergence of the highly viral but milder Omicron variant drove up infection rates, resulting in a drop in consumer spending,” according to Mr. DIY.

Tills were more active, but shoppers kept spending reined in. Despite an 8.1 per cent rise in the number of transactions, average basket size shrank by 3.7 per cent to MYR 27.80, resulting in a 14.1 per cent drop in average sales per store.

Mr. DIY believes, however, that the headwinds are temporary. “The group has made good progress through the period and is optimistic about its prospects,” it said. It added it would “manage cost increases effectively and to maintain margins at acceptable levels”.