Wickes “confident” in 2024 store pipeline
Wickes has said it remains “confident” in its pipeline for new stores in 2024, as the home improvement retailer releases its results for the third quarter of 2023.
During the quarter, the retailer has completed one refit and opened a new store in Chelmsford, whilst it has opened two new stores in Widnes and Torquay with a further four refits planned in the fourth quarter.
For the 13 weeks to 30 September, Wickes like-for-like sales were broadly in line with the previous year, with a decline of 0.2%. For the year-to-date, Wickes has seen its total like-for-like sales increase by 0.4%.
David Wood, chief executive of Wickes, said: “Once again thanks to our amazing colleagues we have delivered a solid performance in a challenging market as we continue to deliver against our strategic growth drivers. In our core business we have gained further market share and achieved a return to volume growth. We have fulfilled strong demand from our trade customers and been encouraged by greater stability in DIY.
“As we continue to rollout our programme of store openings and refits, I am confident that we have the right product offer and the most attractive locations – enabling us to deliver value for customers and shareholders.”
In September, the retailer said it is targeting 20 new stores over the next five years, despite high inflation harming its profits.