Last week Home Depot announced a 1.8% increase in sales to $19.4 billion. Home Depot's same-store sales increased by 1.7% while reporting that net earnings have reached $1.2 billion compared to $1.1 billion in 2Q last year. However, Lowe's reports an increase in net earnings of 9.6% for the quarter which comes to $832 million. Sales for this quarter have increased by 3.7% to $14.4 billion. Lowe's same-store sales for the second quarter increased 1.6%, while it increased 2.0% for the first half of 2010. It is particularly Lowe's Canadian stores that show strong figures with more than an 11% increase in US dollars.

Clas Ohlson reinforces its management team with Catharina Bengtson. From 1st October 2010 Ms. Bengtson will take up the post as supply chain director. Ms. Bengtson currently works for IKEA, where she holds the position as business development manager.

In recent weeks Ehitus Service, which was founded in 2002 in Tallinn, has opened four new home improvement and garden centres. These new openings bring their total number of stores up to 19.

EDRA are pleased to announce that BYKO, an Icelandic Home Improvement Company with 8 stores, including the biggest construction products store in Iceland, as well as Metrika, a 20-store DIY retailer operating in Northwest Russia, have joined the EDRA organisation, bringing the total number of members up to 26 operating in 43 countries.

The world’s largest garden trade fair spoga+gafa will take place 5th -7th September 2010 in Cologne, Germany. The fair expects over 2,000 suppliers from 53 countries to present their products and more than 45,000 trade visitors from around the world. EDRA will be present at the event.

On 29th July 2010 a franchise partner of the Italian Bricofer opened a new home improvement centre in Capena, Italy. Bricofer now operates 70 Bricofer centres, 7 Bricofer Point centres and 13 Bricofer Ferramenta centres. The Bricofer cooperation reported a €270 m turnover last year.

EDRA is growing and takes on a new member of staff. In addition to opening a new office in Brussels in September 2010, EDRA has taken on a new Administrative Assistant, Cecilie Beyer, who joined at the end of June 2010. Cecilie has been living in Cologne for a year and with her Danish background and international experiences she will be assisting the General Secretary, John Herbert, in the Cologne office.

EDRA are pleased to announce that Sodimac, the largest Home Improvement Company in Latin America with 65 Stores in four countries, namely Chile, Peru, Argentina and Colombia, has joined the EDRA Global Home improvement Network (GHIN) bringing the total members of GHIN to six. The other members of GHIN are Bunnings (Australia), Epicentrk (Ukraine), Baucenter (Russia), Stroy Arsenal/Trest SCM (Russia) and Stroymart (Kazakhstan).

The fifth international DIY and Household Congress 2011, Russia's leading forum for the DIY industry, will be produced in association with EDRA, the European DIY-Retail Association. The congress will take place at the Hilton Leningradskaya in Moscow on the 26-27 May 2011. BBCG was established in the 1990s and organises conferences focusing on important issues that affect businesses in Russia. BBCG is recognised in Russia and internationally for bringing together leaders of the retail sector.

Best Buy's CEO for branded operations, Paul Antoniadis, has left the company less than three months after the opening of its first UK store. Mr Antoniadis has left the US electricals giant "to continue his passion for international start-ups and new business ventures", according to a statement from the company. The retailer has opened three stores in the UK so far, with plans for five more already announced. Andrew Harrison, currently CEO of The Carphone Warehouse, will takeover as Chief Operating Officer for Best Buy Europe.

Belarusian company OMA has opened its fifth store, which is claimed to be the first full-service DIY store in the capital of Minsk. The operator is part of the Lithuanian Senukai Group, which in turn is a subsidiary of Rautakesko, the DIY division of the Kesko group of companies. The opening was attended by many VIPs including Sergei Sidorski, prime minister of Belarus, and Andrius Kubilius, prime minister of Lithuania, Matti Halmesmäki, president and CEO of Kesko and Augustinas Rakauskas, founder of Senukai. With this new 8,500m² store OMA hopes to build on its market share of 5% of the Belarusian market, which is estimated at €1.3 bn.

A new, smaller, 'convenience' DIY store format is part of the British DIY-Retailer’s 'Parasite Location Strategy' whereby it aims to open smaller stores, 15-20 minutes from competitor outlets to "cut off" parts of the catchment area. The first smaller format store is already trading from the company's Congleton site. Previously measuring 30,000sq ft with a 10,000sq ft garden centre, the store itself has been halved in size, yet still retains every category, albeit with reduced SKUs, down 28% to 10,400. These measures have increased stockturn by 38% to 5.5 and sales per square foot has risen 57% to £113.

Mark Laidlaw has been appointed as the new CEO of the Mitre 10 Group. Laidlaw joined Metcash in 2001 and over the past six years has been General Manager of Metcash's Victorian IGA Distribution business. He takes over from the interim CEO, Mark Burrowes, who was appointed in February 2009 to lead the company through a planned transition period.

New UK Chancellor, George Osborne, has announced an increase in VAT from 17.5% to 20%, with effect 4 January 2011, as part of a decisive move to tackle Britain's record debts. The VAT increase, which Mr Osborne said would raise £13bn a year, brings the UK more into line with rates elsewhere in Europe. Other Budget announcements include raising the National Insurance threshold to 21% in April 2011 and cutting corporation tax by 1% per year for four years, which will give the UK the lowest rate of corporation tax in the G7. Kingfisher CEO Ian Cheshire said: "It looks likes this budget 'does what it says on the tin'. It addresses the deficit more through spending cuts than tax increases. On VAT, retailers will be relieved that they have been given a sensible timescale to plan and implement the change."

From 29 January to 1 February 2011, Frankfurt will host the new Creativeworld, a trade fair encompassing hobby, craft and artists' materials. The event will include Workshops and presentations by exhibitors, as well as the 'Creativity meets Design' trend show, and will be held parallel to Paperworld and Christmasworld. For more information visit: www.creativeworld.messefrankfurt.com

Almost 320 senior executives from across the industry in Europe attended the 1st European Home Improvement Forum, which, according to the feedback from those attending, was a huge successs. There were many brilliant presentations including Ian Cheshire (Kingfisher), Sergio Giroldi (OBI), Martin Goetzeler (OSRAM) and Dr. Jack Truong (3M). Robert Swan (the first person to walk to both the North and South Poles) gave an incredible speech to rapturous applause. The highlight of the event was without question the presentation of the 1st European DIY-Lifetime Award, presented to Sir Geoffrey Mulcahy for his outstanding contribution to the industry. Sir Geoff will always be remembered as the man who ‘built Kingfisher’.

After the unexpected death of Mr. Claude Lewin, Jumbo-Markt AG has announced a new Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Jerome Gilg (currently Director of Marketing / Purchasing) will take on the role of CEO with immediate effect and Mr. Ivo Casutt (Director P.I.A.F.) has been appointed COO and assumes, in addition to his current duties, the responsibility for the expansion projects.

We have received the sad news that Mr. & Mrs. Pevec of Croation DIY chain of the same name are both in custody following the bankruptcy of their company.

Otmar Hornbach, the great-grandson of the founder of DIY-retail chain Hornbach Holding AG, will celebrate his 80th birthday on Sunday 6 June. Mr. Hornbach has contributed much to the industry, including opening the first combined DIY store and garden centre in Bornheim in 1968, the first of its kind in Europe. His achievements were recognised in 2007 when he was presented with the DIY Lifetime-Award by BHB, the German home improvement centre association. Many happy returns Herr Hornbach!

The EDRA/fediyma Forum, taking place on 10-11 June in Vienna, will commence on 9 June with a store tour of the city. Led by bauMax board member Hans-Jörg Greimel, the tour will cover stores of bauMax, Hornbach, OBI and Bauhaus, giving an insight into the newest emerging trends in the Austrian DIY-retail industry. For more information contact the organisers, the Conference Group at: info@conferencegroup.de.

We are pleased to announce that Rinat Mukhametvaleev, CEO of Stroy Arsenal and EDRA Board Member representing the EDRA Global Home Improvement Network, has been awarded the 'DIY Person of the Year'. The award was presented in the Moscow Hilton Hotel by the Russian DIY Industry at the Russian DIY Forum. The company also won 'The Store of the Year' award, with the 12,000 m² store in UFA East Russia, one of its 47 stores in the country.

If you haven't already registered for the EDRA/fediyma Forum, on 10-11 June in Vienna, you should sign up now. There is only three weeks left until this inaugural Forum will open its doors to an expected 350 delegates, with 24 CEOs from home centres from 15 countries already registered. With an incredible lineup of speakers for the Forum including many industry top names such as Ian Cheshire (Kingfisher), Régis Degelcke (Groupe ADEO and EDRA President) and Sergio Giroldi (OBI), in addition to Polar explorer Robert Swan as the motivational keynote speaker, this event will truly be the highlight in the DIY industry calendar.

The National Hardware Show® in Las Vegas has seen a 20% attendance increase with exhibitors reporting brisk traffic at their booths. Of the 20,000 pre-registered attendees, 22% were from overseas, double the rate of years past. The total increase could be seen as an optimistic sign for the home improvement industry as a whole. The fair is scheduled to take place from 10 - 12 May next year.

50 years after the opening of his first Bauhaus home centre, owner Heinz G. Baus said that the majority shareholding will be placed in a foundation, ending the speculation that Mr Baus intended to place Bauhaus on the stock exchange. The quarterly reporting does not go down well with Mr Baus who said "we do not need fresh capital, we have enough." In 2009 Bauhaus "we have never made a loss" invested €500m in 15 new stores. Today the 210 Bauhaus stores (average size of 15,000m2) have sales of €4.1 bn and employ 15,000 associates, making the company the third largest home centre chain in Germany.

On 26 April OBI founder Manfred Maus celebrated his 75th birthday. In 1958 Mr. Maus started work with wholesaler Emil Lux and within three years he became co-partner in the business. International travel, particularly to the US, opened his eyes to the opportunities in the DIY industry and so began his meteoric career. He co-founded OBI in 1970 and carried out his role as CEO until 2004. He is honorary president of BHB (the German Home Centre Association) and was fundamental in the establishment of EDRA. In the last few years he has been the recipient of a number of honours, including the German Retailing Lifetime Award and the BHB DIY-Lifetime Award. Many happy returns to Manfred Maus!

Bill Grimsey is stepping down as Chief Executive to become Chairman at British home centre chain Focus. Managing Director Rob Gladwin, who has been at Focus since 2008, and was previously Managing Director of Travis Perkins' Benchmarx business and retail operations Director at Wickes prior to that, will take over as Chief Executive. Chris Morgan, Finance Director at Tesco in the Czech Republic, is joining the management team as Chief Financial Officer and Brian Robbins, previously Vice-President in merchandising and sourcing at Home Depot, is taking the role of Chief Commercial Officer responsible for trading and marketing. Mr Grimsey said that, going forward, the changes would put the company in a better position to expand and reformat its stores.

The French Groupe ADEO has reported a turnover of €11.24 bn for 2009, a 10.3% increase compared to 2008. With a total revenue of €9.46 bn and 280 stores the main brand under the group, Leroy Merlin, garnered the largest share of the growth. Groupe ADEO's other stores include Aki, Brico Center, Bricoman, Dompro, KBAN and Weldom Zodio.

With over 1,000 delegates, Retail Business Russia will be the largest event of its kind in Russia and the former Soviet Union. Held annually since 2001, the leading summit for Russia's retail industry will host approximately 100 key speakers and delegates comprising the owners and chief executives of retail chains in all market sectors, international and national manufacturers, distributors, investment companies and government representatives. The Conference will take place in Moscow on 9-10 September.

David Quayle, one of the co-founders of B&Q, has died aged 73. Mr Quayle founded the retail chain with Richard Block in 1969. Speaking of his death, Ian Cheshire, CEO of B&Q parent company Kingfisher, said: "David Quayle was a true entrepreneur who, together with B&Q's co-founder Richard Block, created a genuinely new retail concept. It was David's vision that helped create the successful B&Q we know today, with its 330 stores and 30,000 staff. We all owe him a great debt. He will be greatly missed."

Never before have so many CEOs from Home Improvement Retailers attended an industry event. 24 CEOs from 16 countries have already registered for the Forum, taking place in Vienna on 10-11 June, with more anticipated. Countries represented will include UK, France, Germany, Austria, Sweden, Belgium, Spain, Poland, Iceland, Ireland, Finland, Russia, Norway, Italy, Portugal and the Netherlands.

Following the unprecedented disruption to international travel as a result of the volcanic eruption in Iceland, the 2010 World Retail Congress has been postponed. The event will be rescheduled with a similar programme in Berlin in October 2010. The full details will be confirmed in the next few days.

DIY-Retailer Wickes is trialling smaller format kitchen and bathroom stores in a bid to fill the vacuum in market share left by the collapse of MFI in 2008. The chain, owned by Travis Perkins, opened the first two ‘Wickes Kitchens & Bathrooms’ stores last month with plans to establish more of the 5,000-10,000 sq ft stores in a mixture of retail park and high street locations. Wickes’ pre-tax profits soared from £10.2 to £57m during 2009.

New research for Homebase, focusing on energy, waste, water and other environmental behaviours has found that helping households reduce their carbon footprint is a 'mass market opportunity'. The home centre chain gave £500 to each of 100 nationally representative families to spend on a selection of 'green' products and equipment and challenged them to reduce their environmental footprint during a 12-month investigation. The results showed that energy use was the top priority for everybody, with 81% of households taking at least one energy-saving measure, leading to an average energy saving of 10%. The findings allow Homebase to develop new products to help customers live more sustainable lives.

Shoppers should shun big brand stores in favour of smaller independent garden centres when buying garden products, according to a new Which? Gardening report. Wyevale, owned by The Garden Centre Group, the UK's largest garden centre chain, was the worst-rated specialist gardening retailer to feature in the survey, performing only slightly better than Tesco, Homebase, and Focus, who ranked bottom of the table. The report said the four were criticised by Which? members for having ill-informed staff who were difficult to track down. Large, independent garden centres came out on top, with Coolings in Kent voted the best outlet by Which? members. Price was the only sticking point, but, according to the report, "the consensus was that you get what you pay for". Which? Gardening editor Ceri Thomas said: "While it would be unfair to expect those working in a supermarket or DIY store to know much about plants, it's shocking that Britain's largest garden centre chain and its staff scored so badly in our survey.”

Bunnings, the number one home centre chain in Australasia, have joined the Global Home Improvement Network (GHIN), becoming an associate member of the European DIY-Retail Association (EDRA). Operating 177 warehouse stores and 56 smaller formats across Australia and New Zealand, Bunnings employs over 28,000 people and achieved a turnover of A$5.8 billion in the 2008/09 financial year. Bunnings is the fifth member of GHIN and brings the total number of members and associate members of EDRA to 23, operating in 40 countries.

Robert Swan, OBE, polar explorer, environmental leader and the first person ever to have walked to the North and South poles, is confirmed as a keynote speaker for the EDRA/fediyma Forum in Vienna. "The best speaker I've seen in 30 years", said John Herbert, General Secretary of EDRA. "He delivers a very strong message on sustainability and protecting the environment". Robert Swan, alongside a wealth of industry leaders, will be speaking on the topic of 'The New Chessboard after the Crisis' at the Forum held on 10-11 June.

Europe's second largest home improvement chain, Leroy Merlin of Groupe ADEO, has opened its first store in Turkey. Located in Bursa, Turkey's fourth largest city, the new store spans 13,700 m² over two levels, employs 170 people and will be open seven days a week.

Hosted by Caroline Hupin, Director of the French Home Centre Association (FMB) in Paris, the EDRA Project Group Environment held another successful meeting last month focussing on the issues currently facing the industry. The meeting comprised presentations on the DIY industry in France (FMB), Sustainable Trade and Green Purchasing of Natural Stones (The Working Group on Sustainable Natural Stone, Netherlands) and the implications of legislation including the recast of the WEEE Directive, EU-Timber Regulation, the recast of the Energy Labelling Directive and EU-Regulation on Biocides (Eurocommerce). The event concluded with a discussion between the 15 attendees, from 10 countries, including use of the FSC logo, and was followed by a tour of the newly refurbished Leroy Merlin store in Beaubourg, Paris.

The programme for the 1st European Home Improvement Forum, to be held in Vienna on 10-11 June, will incorporate speeches from CEO's of the top three Home Improvement Retailers in Europe. Packed with business tips and innovations, the lineup for the event includes speeches from Ian Cheshire (Kingfisher), Régis Degelcke (Groupe ADEO and EDRA President) and Sergio Giroldi (OBI). The programme for the Forum, hosted by EDRA, fediyma and the Conference Group, can be downloaded at: www.edra-online.org.

Thomas Marx (43), formerly Managing Director of buaMax Croatia and Slovenia, is to take over the management of the sales in Austria with immediate effect. His position will be filled by Dusan Gostencnik (42), who is moving from head of sales for Croatia and Slovenia. bauMax is the market leader in Austria with a 26% share and 67 stores.

Whilst visitor numbers were down on last year, the 56,500 trade visitors from 124 countries who did visit the International Hardware Fair in Cologne earlier this month found there was still a lot on offer. As ever the show provided a wide offering of new products and innovations in tools, industrial supply, fastenings and home improvement. It maintained its international appeal with more than 80% of the exhibitors from outside Germany, including large contingents from China, Taiwan, India and the U.S.

EDRA is sad to announce the sudden passing of Claude Lewin last week after a short illness. The General Director of Swiss DIY-Retailer Jumbo-Markt AG was known throughout Switzerland as a proven and respected expert of the retail business. His human qualities, his commercial acumen, his leadership and his unwavering commitment will be greatly missed.

Chile has been hit by an 8.8 magnitude earthquake and associated tsunamis destroying houses, high-rise buildings, roads and infrastructure. 80% of Chile's 16m people are believed to have been affected in some way by the earthquake. Chilean home centre chain Sodimac has been impacted by the event; operations have resumed but six stores are currently still closed. Reconstruction activity for the country is anticipated to take over three years and will require investment of around US $30bn. This monumental task will consume products and building materials, which will become scarce in a very short time, requiring new sources of supply to be found. Sodimac urgently need to buy very large quantities of merchandise to support this giant reconstruction effort. Executive VP and General Merchandise Manager, Francisco Torres, has been given the responsibility of heading this new international sourcing effort. Please contact him if you might be able to assist: ftorres@sodimac.cl.

On 3rd March Austrian home centre chain bauMax celebrated the opening of its first store in the industrial and commercial city of Samsun, in the Black Sea region of Turkey. Covering 14,000m2, the new store is the first of three planned by bauMax for the country this year. In the longer term a further 30 stores and a turnover of €600m are planned in Turkey, the ninth country in which bauMax operates its total 144 stor

Rautakesko opened its 11th K-rauta store in Tula, Russia, last week. With a sales area of 13,100 m², the store carries a selection of more than 30,000 different building, home improvement and garden products. The outlet is the second store in Moscow's catchment area for the K-rauta chain, which also has nine K-rauta stores in the St. Petersburg area.

New Eurobrico President Luis Franco has confirmed the dates for Eurobrico 2010. Spain's leading DIY fair will take place on 3-5 November in Valencia and will be an innovative showcase emphasising training and information through a programme of parallel events and is hoping to attract international professionals with serious purchasing power, particularly from the European marketplace.

Leroy Merlin, the French DIY market leader, has opened its first store that produces more energy than it consumes. The company's 111th outlet reports a positive energy balance due to a range of measures including thermal insulation of the building and a photovoltaic solar power plant covering an area of 5,785 m². Of the 60,000 products the Valence store offers, 8,700 carry the company's own logo depicting their environmentally sound and energy-saving credentials. The company is planning to modify 17 stores in 2010 within this new sustainability framework.

B&Q-owner Kingfisher saw group sales decline 3% to £2.3bn like-for-like (lfl) in its fourth quarter of trading to 30 January, after a strong third quarter. UK sales were appreciably impacted by the adverse weather conditions. B&Q saw sales dip in the UK by 3.5% lfl to £836m, prior to the cold snap lfls were actually slightly up. However, gross margins are expected to be significantly up "reflecting reduced promotional activity compared to Q4 last year, better sales of higher margin products and continued shrinkage reduction and supply chain cost efficiencies," according to the trading statement. The group reports total annual sales to 30 January of £10.503bn with sales of £4.442bn for the United Kingdom and Ireland, £4.242bn for France and a combined £1.819bn for Poland, China, Spain and Russia.

EDRA, the European DIY-Retail Association, fediyma (the European Federation of DIY and Gardening Manufacturers) and the Conference Group are pleased to announce that Sir Geoffrey Mulcahy will be the first recipient of the new European Home Improvement Lifetime Award. The award will be presented during the fediyma/EDRA Forum in Vienna on 10-11 June. Sir Geoffrey joined what is now Kingfisher in 1982, first as Group Finance Director, then as Group Managing Director. During this time he was instrumental in the reorganisation and expansion of the Group and its subsequent major development in the UK and internationally, overseeing an increase in market capitalisation from £105m in 1982 to over £5bn when he stepped down in November 2002. Kingfisher has grown to be one of Europe's leading retailing groups, with annual turnover of £10.5bn from 830 outlets in 8 countries.

The 'Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World' list was announced at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. The annual project, initiated by Corporate Knights, ranked EDRA members Kesko 33 and Kingfisher 46 based on a set of Key Performance Indicators calculated using environmental, social, governance and financial data

Lowe's Cos Inc, the second largest US home improvement chain, has opened its first store in Mexico in the northern industrial city of Monterrey, as it expands from its core market to gain new revenue sources. With an investment of $100 million, Lowe's plans to open five stores in the Monterrey area over the next few years and will compete against larger rival Home Depot Inc, which has more than 70 stores in Mexico. As economic growth in consumption-driven economies like the United States remains sluggish, US retailers are looking abroad for growth opportunities. Lowe's has operations in Canada and recently teamed with the Woolworths Ltd chain in Australia.

A new year and new management for the BHB (German DIY Retail Association). Dr Peter Wüst has replaced John W. Herbert as managing director with immediate effect. Dr Wüst was previously MD of the German Home Improvement Manufacturers Association (Bau + DIY) and was also responsible for the administration of Fediyma, the European Federation of DIY Manufacturers. He will be supported by Stefan Michell, who has been promoted to director for trade fairs, events and PR.

Last year the Finnish Kesko Group recorded sales in the building materials and DIY retail division 22.3 per cent down on 2008. The division overall recorded sales amounting to € 2.3514 bn, of which € 1.0717 bn came from the group's business in Finland (-21.0 per cent) and € 1.2797 bn was generated by the division abroad.

A B&Q spokesperson has categorically denied that there are any plans to open smaller-format stores in the UK, despite recent reports to the contrary. The Kingfisher-owner DIY chain plans to maximise the space it already has and has announced a multi-million pound investment in its garden sector, including plans to revamp 78 of its garden centres by Easter, in addition to a partnership deal with UK garden icon and TV presenter Alan Titchmarsh. Titchmarsh will provide regular tips and advice through in-store communication and on the B&Q website. B&Q hopes the revamps, which will carry over to the rest of its stores in the future, will up its 12 per cent share of the garden centre market, which is currently worth more than £ 5 bn (€ 5.75 bn).

Frank Loncar, buying director at Lowe's, the No. 2 DIY retailer in the United States, will be in Germany not only for the duration of the Hardware Fair but for an entire week. Altogether the eight-member team will be on a buying and inspection tour from 23 February to 3 March.

The first EDRA/FEDIYMA Forum is to take place in Vienna, Austria, on 10 and 11 June. The Forum, entitled 'The New Chessboard after the Crisis', will include presentations from industry leaders as well as discussion panels. The presentation of the European Lifetime Award will be a particular highlight of the event.

EDRA congratulates Karl-Heinz Dähne on his 80th birthday on 13 January. In 1977, when there were only 400 home centres in Germany, Herr Dähne had the vision to create a trade magazine. Now, 33 years later, diy Fachmagazin is one of the leading trade magazines in Germany.

EDRA, the European DIY Retail Association, which was administered by the French FMB and the German BHB in the past, became an independent body on Wednesday 2 December. At a meeting held in Berlin the new articles of the association were unanimously agreed upon by all the members of EDRA. The EDRA board was appointed for the next three years and John W Herbert was confirmed as the general secretary of the association. As EDRA's President Régis Degelcke of Groupe Adeo stated: This momentous occasion reinforces the spirit of EDRA, which is to establish unity across the European home improvement industry in order to create a strong voice and representation for its members. The first priority for EDRA is to open a lobby office in Brussels with the sole aim of pursuing the interests of the home centre industry in Europe, which is currently estimated to be worth around € 80 bn. The other objectives of EDRA are to develop its international network and communication between members. EDRA membership currently includes five trade associations and 13 direct European members. A further five members will form the new Global Home Improvement Network, which will allow retailers outside Europe to become associate members and to benefit from their affiliation with the EDRA network. In total EDRA now has members from 18 countries who are responsible for operations in 38 countries. Photo: EDRA's new board, from left to right: Martin Essl (bauMax AG), Ray Colman (Woodie's DIY), Sergio Giroldi (OBI AG), John Herbert (EDRA), Régis Degelcke (Groupe Adeo), Ian Cheshire (Kingfisher), Nick Wilkinson (Maxeda B.V.). Carl Otto Løvenskiold of Løvenskiold-Vækerø AS was also confirmed on the board as well as Rinat Mukhametvaleev of Trust SKM, who will represent the new Global Home Improvement Network.

Manfred Maus, the founder of OBI, former EDRA president and honorary president of BHB, the German DIY Retailers' Association, has been presented with this year's BHB DIY Lifetime Award. Dr David Bosshart, CEO of the Gottfried Duttweiler Institute for Economy and Society, awarded the accolade to Mr Maus at the 10th International DIY Retail Congress in Berlin in December. He attributed Mr Maus's success to his ability to identify trends and developments in the areas of retailing, franchising and product assortments.

President Victor Yushchenko of Ukraine, together with Alexandr Gerega, chairman of EpicentrK, opened the world's largest home improvement and DIY store in Ukraine on Saturday. The new store employs 1 000 people and within its 56 000 m2 sales area boasts 74 main check-outs, with a further 24 check-outs situated within the store. Although no figures were given, EDRA estimates that annual sales are expected to be over € 150 mio. EpicentrK has 23 stores and total sales estimated at € 1.4 bn.

The Swedish EU Presidency finally struck a deal with the European Parliament on a new energy label for household appliances which will add more classes to the closed A−G format. As most products today are in the 'A' class, the EU executive proposed a new scale that would "go beyond A". After months of wrangling over the format, EU lawmakers have now settled on an energy label to which further 'A' classes can be added, on top of the traditional best−performing 'A' category. The highest possible class will now be A+++. The agreement also extends energy labelling to all energy−related products, like windows and outer doors that help to save energy. Energy−consuming commercial and industrial products like cold storage rooms or vending machines will also come with an energy label in future. EU ministers must formally approve the compromise agreement before the parliament can sign it off at the beginning of next year.

In the first three quarters of 2009 Baumax generated sales of € 91.5 mio in Upper Austria. This amounts to a 3 per cent improvement on last year. What is more, the Baumax Group has succeeded in bucking the general trend and increasing sales during the first three quarters of 2009 in Austria as a whole by more than 3 per cent to € 473 mio. The company attributes this above all to gains in the areas of gardening and thermal refurbishment, as well as to the introduction of new product ranges. The new items in the product offer include a great choice of premium quality shade and heating systems, new products in the plumbing and tool departments, prefabricated garages and solar installations, plus brand−name windows and doors.

The most modern Leroy Merlin DIY and garden store in Poland so far opened in the industrial city of Katowice in Upper Silesia on 4 November. With a combined retail area of 6 800 m², the store is presented as a ‘Five Worlds’ concept with the emphasis on bathrooms and plumbing, building materials, garden, interior décor and technical products. This new addition means that the French Adeo Group now operates a total of 34 DIY and building stores in the Leroy Merlin format and two Bricoman DIY discounters in Poland.

Werner Moser, 41, has taken over as international buying director for the Technology world at Baumax. Mr Moser, who has been with the company for more than 20 years, has been responsible for buying activities in the Living sector for the past seven. Ulrike Katschnig, 34, will with immediate effect take on responsibility for international buying in the Living world. She has worked for the Austrian market leader for nine years, with responsibility since 2005 for international buying activities in the field of interior decoration.

Praktiker opened its first Albanian DIY superstore in Tirana, the capital of the country, on 30 October 2009. Along with the normal DIY store ranges customers can also find furniture, kitchens, housewares, white and brown goods, plus electronic articles, all displayed on an overall floorspace of around 8 800 m². If the trial phase passes off successfully Praktiker intends to rapidly expand its presence in Albania, especially in Tirana and in Durres, a seaport situated about 30 km away.

Nomi, the Polish DIY chain founded in 1993, opened a new DIY store complete with garden centre on 2 November. Located in the south−east Polish town of Debica (pop. 47 000), this outlet brings the total number of Nomi stores operating in Poland to 31. Last year saw the DIY retail company, which is headquartered in Kielce and integrated into the Bricoalliance organisation on an international level, realized gross sales of € 125 mio.

This month Slovenian retailer Merkur opened its largest sales centre in the Serbian capital, Belgrade. The new store will employ 101 people and comprise an indoor area in excess of 28 000 m² spread over three floors. So far this is the second Merkur sales centre in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, and the Merkur Group’s most substantial investment in 2009.

Home improvement retailer B&Q, and parent company Kingfisher, have joined the 10:10 climate change campaign, pledging to cut carbon emissions by 10 per cent in 2010. The company aims to have reduced its carbon emissions by 90 per cent in 2023 and has highlighted lighting, transport and packaging as key areas where it sees opportunities to make changes to meet the targets. All displays already use energy−efficient lighting, but B&Q is now looking at ways to utilise natural light to reduce the dependence on artificial lighting. A fleet of 60 double−decker lorries was introduced earlier this year, saving the retailer 4 800 miles and 4 600 kg of emissions a day, while B&Q has also committed to a 15 per cent reduction in packaging weight by 2012.

The 3rd International Garden Expo Tokyo (GARDEX) and 1st International Exterior Expo Tokyo (EXTEPO) will be held from Wednesday 11 to Friday 13 November 2009 at Makuhari Messe in Japan. GARDEX is Japan’s largest trade show focusing on garden products and will comprise nearly 300 exhibitors from 18 countries. EXTEPO is brand new this year and will include outdoor living and building products.

A new voice-recognition product location service that helps shoppers find products on store shelves faster and easier is being tried out in an Ace Hardware store. A customer searching for a product in the store can call the service, 'Aisle411', free of charge from their mobile and will immediately receive the product location both by voice message over the phone and via a text message. Aisle411 will also offer coupons via text message that can be used immediately in the store. According to Aisle411, more than 22 per cent of shoppers give up while looking for hard-to-find items in a store.

Subject to approval by the competition authorities the French DIY retailer Mr. Bricolage is taking over the Les Briconautes and Les Jardinautes sales channels with their 178 outlets (332 000 m²) and sales of € 365 mio. This acquisition will result in the Mr. Bricolage Group becoming the third-largest DIY retailer in France with some 700 stores (50 of them abroad), a retail area in excess of 1.6 mio m² and a sales volume of € 2.2 bn.

Visa has announced its 'card scheme fees' will increase by as much as 142 per cent, adding around £ 20 mio to UK retailer costs and potentially driving up prices. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has called on Visa to justify its charges, which are non-negotiable fees paid by retailers' banks and card processors, in order to be part of the Visa card network. Visa's interchange fee, another of its fees paid by the retailer, is currently under investigation by the European Commission and the Office of Fair Trading.

Spiros A. Doukas has taken over as manager of Migros Do it + Garden. He has also taken over responsibility for the OBI stores for Migros in Switzerland with effect from 1 October 2009. A significant synergy effect is expected from bringing the two businesses together under one manager. Mr Doukas reports directly to the director of Migros' specialised stores.

Statistics compiled by KMU-Forschung Austria show that DIY retailing in Austria experienced better progress in the first six months of 2009 than in the same period last year. The survey reveals that the DIY stores recorded a sales increase of 1.1 per cent in the period January to July 2008. This contrasts with the increase of just 0.4 per cent reported by the Austrian retail sector as a whole. Looking at the month of July alone, the DIY retail segment can point to an increase of as much as 3.7 per cent on the same month last year, while retailing as a whole was able to grow by no more than 2.4 per cent over the same period.

Kingfisher-owned B&Q has announced its biggest-ever price campaign, including the launch of its first Autumn Privilege Card. The card was received by customers spending more than £ 50 during the last weekend in September and entitled them to an additional 10 per cent discount on all products until the end of October, both online and in-store. Tradesmen also received a 10 per cent discount during the weekend. The campaign comes in time for customers getting their homes and gardens ready for winter.

Michael Baumgardt, managing director of Zeus, is the new president of the German Association of DIY Retailers and Garden Centres (BHB). His colleagues on the board elected him unanimously to the top spot in the industry association, where he will serve for a period of three years. In his capacity as BHB president, Michael Baumgardt is responsible for the communications and PR portfolio as well as for industry figures and statistics and personnel development.

Lowe's has appointed Alan Huggins as the new president of its Lowe's Canada division. With more than 25 years of retail experience, Huggins succeeds Don Stallings, who is moving to Australia to represent Lowe's in the company's new joint venture with Woolworths.

Kingfisher, Europe's largest home improvement retailer, has announced that it expects to report adjusted pre-tax profits in the range of £ 285 mio to £ 290 mio for the six months to 1 August 2009. The release comes more than a week earlier than scheduled due to an administrative error.

The president of EDRA, Régis Degelcke, is pleased to announce that Ian Cheshire, Group Chief Executive of Kingfisher, will join the EDRA board with immediate effect. The rest of the EDRA board is composed of Ray Coleman (Woodies), Martin Essl (Baumax AG), Sergio Giroldi (Obi AG), Carl Otto Lovenskiold (Lovenskiold AS) and Nick Wilkinson (Maxeda BV).

EDRA is pleased to announce the appointment of Catherine Morgan as administration/research assistant with immediate effect. This is a newly created position to cope with the many requests from members, now in 17 countries and representing almost 80 per cent of the total European home centre sales.