Toolstation France Returns To Growth

Following a COVID-imposed pause in its expansion programme during 2020, during which the focus was on ensuring the safety of colleagues and customers, Toolstation France has roared back into full expansion mode. The youngest of Toolstation’s European businesses, Toolstation France has opened two new branches around the southern city of Marseille in November and will open a further two in the south in December, ending 2020 with 19 branches compared to 11 at the start of the year.

“The year has been both challenging and satisfying for Toolstation in France” commented Lucy Lynch, MD. “Our priority, as for all the companies in the Travis Perkins Group, has been the safety of all colleagues and customers but at the same time, the Toolstation business model is clearly responding to the needs of our customers, both Trade and DIY. Our 10 minute Click and Collect service is obviously hugely popular with the wide range of product in stock and the expert advice available in all our stores are proving a hit with French customers. There are significant differences to the UK customer behaviour that we have adapted to and we are delighted to see the results of this in the opening weeks performance of our new stores in the south of the country”.

Toolstation has been present online in France since 2014 and opened it’s first ‘bricks and mortar’ store at it’s St Priest headquarters in the eastern city of Lyon in 2017. With 19 stores trading today and a further 5 opening in Q1 2021, the existing St Priest Distribution Centre is reaching its operating limit. Toolstation has recently taken over an existing Ikea facility which is being developed into a ‘state of the art’ 9 000sq metre distribution centre to support the expansion of the retail network and the rapidly growing online business.

“Being a true omni-channel business means we can react rapidly to changing circumstances and grow very fast this also demands a significant investment in infrastructure, systems and IT, for which the support of Travis Perkins Plc and the Toolstation Europe team has been invaluable” commented Lucy Lynch. “2020 has, of course, been enormously unpredictable and thrown up significant challenges for us, as it has for everyone, but thanks to the dedication of our colleagues and underlying robustness of our business model, Toolstation will start 2021 in excellent health and with exciting prospects for the future.”

Source : Toolstation

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