Booming hose and fan demand lifts B&Q owner

B&Q owner Kingfisher bounced back from a sales slump in the second quarter of its financial year as the hottest summer in decades boosted sales of fans, barbecue charcoal and paddling pools.

Sales of hose pipes, sprinklers and accessories at B&Q jumped 400pc in the three months to July and customers also bought 375,000 bags of charcoal. The surge helped the chain’s like-forlike sales – excluding store openings and closures and adjusted for currency swings – grow 3.6pc to £1bn.

That compares with a dramatic 9pc slump in the previous quarter, when the “Beast from the East” caused customers to delay DIY projects and stay at home.

The hot weather did little to revive the fortunes of Kingfisher’s French chain Castorama, however, which saw a 3.8pc like-for-like drop, leaving overall group like-for-likes up just 1.6pc.

The FTSE 100 company, which also owns Screwfix, is in the middle of a turnaround plan aimed at cutting costs. Boss Veronique Laury said: “We started our transformation two and a half years ago and are on track to deliver our strategic milestones for the third year in a row.” Shares closed down 4.8pc at 274.5p.