NEWS NEWS IN BRIEF


n DLF Seeds is investing in research that will bring new lawn seed and fertilisers to market, designed to meet the challenges posed by climate change. More than 10% of the company’s workforce is employed solely in research and development, with the company committing €14million per year to projects that will supply retailers with lawncare products of the future. The investment in R&D has already led to a major lawn fertiliser launch this year. n Australian cleaning brand, Sabco has joined BHETA. Sabco was founded in 1892 in South Australia as the South Australian Brush Company with limited production facilities and just three employees. In 2009 The Libman Company took full ownership of the Sabco business and Sabco entered the UK market in 2016 with an exclusive range of products in Homebase stores nationally. n For the first time Toolstation has added boilers into its central heating range and will offer a complete range from Vokèra by Riello. Toolstation will carry three different combi boilers and two system boilers, along with flue kits and accessories, available depending on the end user’s needs. n Stax has “taken positive steps” to combat issues in tile supply chain and revealed details of 14 new designs and collections recently added to its product range. The new tile ranges include classic designs, as well as modern, plain and geometric styles from suppliers, such as Grupo Halcón, Johnson Tiles, Verona, +39 and Newker. n Following the opening of five new stores last month, discount chain B&M has also officially re-opened its Wallsend store in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne after work to expand the site and create “a bigger, better store” has now been completed. The B&M Bargains store on Wiltshire Drive, which the retailer says “welcomes a huge amount of local shoppers every day”, closed its doors on May 27 to begin the work and re-opened to the public on Saturday, June 1.


4 DIY WEEK 14 JUNE 2019 Screwfix scraps DIY Express format


Kingfisher remaining


confirmed Shepton


the Mallett


branch has now reverted to a Screwfix, as the business moves away from its trial of the dedicated DIY store format. The 5,000sq ft DIY Express


store in Shepton Mallett opened on Haskins Retail Estate


in


March 2012, with Kingfisher announcing it would be trialling a DIY convenience format “designed to target consumers in smaller retail spaces”. The venture, headed up by Graham Bell and Jon Mewett – then, both directors at Screwfix – initially received good feedback, with a second branch opening in Hayes following shortly after. Many independents criticised the new launch, accusing Kingfisher of squeezing them out but Screwfix defended the


the unit next door. Confirming the decision to axe


the DIY Express brand altogether, a Kingfisher spokesperson told DIY Week


this morning that


the Shepton Mallett store has been converted to a Screwfix, explaining: “The focus is firmly on the Screwfix format.” One retailer who is happy to see the back of the DIY store is Right Price DIY, which is located a


placement of DIY Express on the high street, saying: “We are testing the DIY Express format because we feel there is a gap in the market for a DIY convenience offer - one that complements the trade/serious DIY offer of our Screwfix stores, as well as successfully sitting alongside the


independent DIY retailer.” However, the Hayes trial clearly proved unsuccessful and the store closed its doors after just five months of trading, with Screwfix choosing to then step up its presence at the Shepton Mallett branch, opening a small- format Screwfix trade counter in


Pass rates in underage knife test sales improve but “still work to do”


Serve Legal ramped up the number of audits it carried out last year by 76% compared with 2017 figures, deploying more than 4,150 teenage mystery shoppers to stores across the UK in 2018 to buy kitchen and other household knives, to audit retailers’ performance around age checks.


The company believes the significant increase in commitment


to independent


auditing worked to improve retailers’ compliance rates, as 82% of Serve Legal’s underage mystery knife buyers were asked to show age identification at the point of purchase, compared to 75% in 2017, and 57% five years ago.


Supermarkets almost doubled their knife sale audit numbers in 2018 (3,211) compared with


2017 (1,685) and achieved the highest pass rate (85%) of brick-and-mortar retailers tested. Findings revealed that homeware stores


increased their audit


numbers by 37% in 2018 (919) vs 2017 (672) and improved their test rates from 59% (2017) to 74% (2018). Meanwhile, London was the best-performing area of the UK, with the capital’s retailers passing 87% of knife sale tests, compared with 82% in 2017.


Wickes ‘half price’ kitchen advert banned


The home improvement retailer has been ordered to withdraw a misleading ad promoting savings on a kitchen range after the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) received a number of complaints, including


challenges raised


by consumer pressure group, Which? A promotion on Wickes’ website, seen in August and September 2018 advertised a number of claims for its Heritage Bone showroom kitchen, including ‘multi-buy 50% off


showroom kitchen units when you buy 5+’, ‘10% off all kitchen products including installation’ and ‘up to 50% off kitchen installation’. However, the ASA ruled that, despite the numerous references to ‘multi-buy’, all of


the other


text and imagery “made clear that what was being advertised was kitchens, as opposed to individual kitchen units”, meaning consumers would believe they were making a genuine saving against


the price they would


otherwise have paid for a full kitchen.


However, “there is still work to do,” said Serve Legal director Ed Heaver, as nearly one in five of young mystery shoppers were sold knives without age checks last year.


While Serve Legal’s audit data for bricks-and-mortar stores highlight


a much-improved


picture, online sales are a less positive story. Last year, 4,395 young mystery shoppers ordered age-restricted goods, including knives, from online retailers and mail order companies.


Over half (51%) took delivery


of their order without being asked for proof of age. Despite an to


increased independent


commitment auditing


by


online retailers – audits more than tripled in 2018 compared to 2017 (1,359) - pass rates improved only marginally from 44% in 2017 to 49% in 2018.


advertising


The biggest issue the watchdog


raised,


however, was that Wickes had significantly increased the price of individual units on the day of the promotion. For example, a 300 mm High Base Line Unit for the Heritage Bone range was listed at a price of £159 from February 22, 2018 to August 15, 2018 and increased to £318 on the day of the promotion, effectively cancelling out any saving. Similar price increases occurred on every unit across each range. Upholding challenges from six complainants, the ASA said: “We told Wickes Building Supplies Ltd not to mislead by basing discount claims on reference prices that were not likely to be meaningful for consumers.”


House of Fraser owner Mike Ashley has submitted a legal to


Debenhams’ company


voluntary arrangement (CVA), which was approved by the department last month.


store’s creditors


The legal challenge from Mr Ashley is the latest round in his battle with the department store, which was taken over in a pre-packed administration by a syndicate of banks and hedge funds it owed money in April. The deal scuppered Mr Ashley’s attempt to take control of the retail business and wiped out his stake in the company, following an ongoing wrangle with the board. Debenhams executive chairman Terry Duddy said: “We believe the challenges to the CVAs to be without merit and will vigorously defend them. Given the overwhelming support for the proposals from creditors, including 80% of landlords, this is an unnecessary distraction as we implement our restructuring plans.”


Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Debenhams’ new owner, Celine UK NewCo 1 Ltd, said: “We note the spurious challenges to Debenhams’ CVA proposals, which were approved by the vast majority of landlords and more than 90% of all creditors. We will move forward with our debt


restructuring process, as expected.” www.diyweek.net


mile away in Downside. Speaking to DIY Week, owner Mark Nixon, who has actively challenged the Screwfix venture since its arrival on his doorstep seven years ago, said DIY Week Express was its biggest competitor and that the store “packed up and left” around one month ago. • Read more from Right Price DIY’s Mark Nixon on page 18


Mike Ashley launches legal battle over Debenhams CVA


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