Property owners deciding to sell up and move on — or use their spare cash to do up their homes during lockdown — has led to a stunning increase in sales at Kingfisher (Miles Costello writes).
To its credit, the owner of the B&Q and Screwfix chains has dramatically raised its game, most notably online, to deal with the surge in demand.
Will it last? Well, amid predictions that the housing market is heading for a renewed slump, particularly if the UK ends up with a no-deal Brexit, the outlook for the DIY business is highly uncertain.
The good news for the retailer and its long-suffering shareholders is that the repair job it has been carrying out under the new chief executive seems to be
