BMBI REPORT
Stronger April sales
for merchants
Total builders’ merchant value
sales to roofers, builders and
contractors were up 8.8%
in April, compared with
April last year, helped by two extra
trading days and an earlier Easter.
Six categories did better, with
Plumbing, Heating and Electrical
gaining 22.5%, followed by Workwear
and Safetywear (+17.7%), Kitchens and
Bathrooms (+12.7%) and Timber and
Joinery Products (+12.6%).
Heavy Building Materials, the largest
category, was just off the pace (+8.4%)
and only Landscaping sold less (-4.3%).
Average sales a day, which take trading
day differences into account, were down
2.1% on April 2017.
Overall sales in April were 3.5% higher
than in March, despite April having one
less trading day. However, March was
affected by bad weather and included
Easter this year, both of which held back
turnover.
Landscaping (+26.0%) saw the biggest
month-on-month increase but Timber &
Joinery Products (+2.7%) was weaker.
Average sales a day in April were
8.7% higher than March.
The fi rst four months of 2018
were up 2.5% on the same period
in 2017, with one additional trading
day this year. Timber and Joinery
Products (+4.8%) did better.
April’s BMBI index was 116.1, with
one less trading day. Landscaping (132.1)
was top and Timber & Joinery Products
(115.9) refl ected the overall index.
Andy Williamson, group managing
director at IKO Plc, said: “Housing has
been the growth driver for RMI, but we
expect this to slow in coming months.
“In April, Halifax reported the biggest
decline in house prices since September
2010. Bad news from some of the UK DIY
sheds is also concerning.
“In March, a credit insurer withdrew
credit insurance from Homebase/
Bunnings. Credit was withdrawn
following poor results, and owner
Wesfarmers’ announced that it had
mishandled the acquisition and could
Andy
Williamson,
group
managing
director at
IKO Plc and
BMBI’s expert
for roofi ng
products
The Builders Merchant
Building Index (BMBI)
The BMBI report uses GfK’s Builders Merchant
Point of Sale Tracking Data, which analyses
sales out data from over 80% of generalist
builders’ merchants’ sales across Great Britain.
abandon the UK. In May, it sold out for
£1 to Hilco Capital. B&Q is also under
pressure, with Kingfi sher reporting a
decline of 8.8% in Q1 (UK and Ireland)
sales due to lower footfall, store closures
and poor weather, although Screwfi x
traded up 9.0% (+3.6% like-for-like).
“Although the industry is facing
many challenges, there are also
opportunities to build share by
diversifying into new areas outside
traditional markets or offering added
value solutions to avoid competing
on price. It’s also important to keep
encouraging best practice in roofing,
and we’ve been pleased to see the
positive adoption of the Safe2Torch
initiative.”
For further information
or a hire quotation call
01858 410372
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July 2018 www.rcimag.co.uk 23
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