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Joint Trading Statement of HORNBACH HOLDING AG and HORNBACH-Baumarkt-AG for the 2005/2006 Financial Year
HORNBACH reports growth of almost 7 percent
Expansion course maintained in Germany and abroad - Very pleasing performance at international DIY megastores with garden centers - Store network expanded to 124 locations in eight countries - Board of Management continues to see great potential in Germany and Europe
Neustadt/Weinstrasse, March 23, 2006
The HORNBACH Group, one of Europe's largest operators of DIY megastores with garden centers, maintained its growth course in the past 2005/2006 financial year (March 1, 2005 - February 28, 2006) in spite of the difficult underlying climate. Based on preliminary figures, the consolidated sales (net) of HORNBACH HOLDING AG rose by 6.6 percent to € 2,367 million. Sales at the HORNBACH-Baumarkt-AG subgroup improved by 6.7 percent to € 2,234 million. The share of sales generated outside Germany rose from 33 percent to 35 percent.
The growth momentum in the 2005/2006 financial year primarily stemmed from the international business. The HORNBACH DIY megastores with garden centers outside Germany reported impressive growth of 14.5 percent at the end of the financial year. At plus 3.9 percent, like-for-like sales were in excess of the high levels already reported in the previous year.
Sales at HORNBACH-Baumarkt-AG in the sharply contested German DIY market rose by 2.8 percent, thus outperforming the overall DIY store and garden center sector, which reported slight growth of 0.7 percent in 2005. In line with comparable store sales across the sector in Germany, like-for-like sales declined by around one percent (-1.1 percent). In addition to weather conditions, the persistently low levels of consumer confidence represent one reason for the slight downturn in like-for-like sales. The sharp increase in energy costs for heating, electricity and mobility can also be assumed to have played a part in dampening consumers' willingness to invest in larger-scale renovation work. Like-for-like sales at the Group as a whole rose by 0.5 percent as a result of the strong international business.
Solid performance in a difficult climate
"We are not dissatisfied with our performance in the past year. Sales lay within our expectations, particularly in view of the fact that the Group's sales performance reacted in line with the caprices of the weather at the beginning and at the end of the financial year and given the further intensification seen in price competition in the past year, especially in the German DIY market," commented Albrecht Hornbach, Chairman of the Board of Management of HORNBACH HOLDING AG. "We have performed solidly, and this is reflected in the fact that our surface productivity is higher than that of any of our competitors." The dynamic growth reported by the stores outside Germany was particularly pleasing in this respect.
"We are not interested in short-term success. We aim to create value with our companies on a sustainable basis. We are therefore not unsettled by the fact that our earnings for the past 2005/2006 financial year will probably, as expected, fall short of the high level reported for the previous year. The long-term growth corridor remains intact. We will consistently maintain our strategy of organic growth in Germany and abroad," added Albrecht Hornbach.
The superb results achieved by HORNBACH in the Kundenmonitor and in other consumer surveys in the past twelve months showed, according to Hornbach, that "we are on the right course. There is still great potential in Germany and Europe."
The complete 2005/2006 annual financial results figures will be announced at the Annual Results Press Conference on May 19, 2006.
124 locations in eight countries
HORNBACH opened a total of eight DIY megastores with garden centers during the 2005/2006 financial year. In Germany, these involved the stores in Berlin-Neukölln, Frankfurt am Main, Würzburg, Munich and Kiel. The store networks in other European countries were extended by new openings in Malmö (Sweden), Kosice (Slovakia) and Hradec Kralové (Czech Republic).
In the course of the financial year, the store network therefore grew to a total of 124 DIY megastores with garden centers (previous year: 117). With total sales areas of around 1.3 million square meters, the average store size now amounts to more than 10,600 m² (previous year: approx. 10,200 m²). HORNBACH has thus underlined its unique position among European DIY operators in the segment of DIY megastores with sales areas in excess of 10,000 m².
Contact:
Axel Müller
Investor Relations
HORNBACH Group
Tel.: +49(0) 6348-60 2444
Fax: +49(0) 6348-60 4299
Email: axel.mueller@hornbach.com
www.hornbach-holding.com
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