By Emily Hawkins
Kingfisher has seen customers forking out to improve their household energy efficiency, as the B&Q owner shaved its full-year profit outlook.
In a trading update for the third quarter, the retail titan posted sales of £3.3bn, a 0.2 per cent boost on the previous year.
The Screwfix owner previously reaped the rewards of a pandemic home renovations boom, but has seen this momentum fade in recent months.
However, sales were still ahead of pre-pandemic levels, up 15.3 per cent compared to three years ago.
DIY sales continued to be driven by “new industry trends such as more working from home and a clear step-up in customer investment in energy saving and efficiency,” Thierry Garnier, chief executive officer, said.
The group tweaked its adjusted pre-tax profit outlook to a range of £730m to £760m, cutting the higher end of the range from a previous forecast of up to £770m.
“While we continue to be vigilant against macroeconomic uncertainty, we remain confident in both the resilience of our industry and in continuing to grow ahead of our markets,” Garnier said.
Operating profit plunged almost 30 per cent, the DIY retailer highlighted earlier this year, in results for the six months ended 31 July.
Depleted sales came against a “backdrop of exceptionally strong” trading in the first-half of 2021, Garnier said.
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