OREANDA-NEWS The owner of the Castorama chain of stores, the British company Kingfisher announced the closure of its stores in Russia, Spain and Portugal, the company said in a report for the third quarter of 2018.

The decision to withdraw from the Russian, Spanish and Portuguese markets in Kingfisher explain the change in strategy. "This will allow us to apply our strategy with great attention and efficiency in our main markets, where we have a leading position or can achieve them", — the words of the General Director of Kingfisher veronik Lori are given in a press release.

Now the Russian network Castorama consists of 20 stores, it is planned to close them during 2019, told the representative of Kingfisher.

As part of the exit from the market, the company is ready to consider both the sale of the network as a whole (which, according to the interlocutor of RBC, would be preferable), and in parts. The process of exit from the market has just begun, so it is too early to talk about specific bidders for the purchase, he added.

In addition, the company Castorama Kingfisher also belong to the network, Screwfix, Brico Dépôt B&Q UK&Ireland. Total sales of Kingfisher stores in the third quarter increased by 1.2%. However, compared to the same period last year, sales fell by 1.3%, this reflects the ongoing trend to reduce sales in the French network Castorama — the most profitable segment of the Kingfisher business, the report said. Therefore, the development of the French Castorama is a strategic goal for the company.

In order to stop the decline in sales in the company's locomotive, a new marketing strategy has been developed for the French network, in support of which a new PR campaign has already been launched. However, in order for all these efforts to bear fruit and stop the overall decline in sales, it takes time, the report said.

In Russia Castorama at the end of 2017 ranks fourth in turnover among the largest DIY retailers, behind Leroy Merlin, Petrovich and OBI, follows from the data of" INFOLine-Analyst". The total revenue of the top 10 largest DIY retail chains for 2017 amounted to 436 billion rubles, the share-37%.

The first Castorama store in Russia opened in 2006, in Samara. Now the network has 20 stores located in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kazan, Krasnodar, Rostov-on-don, Perm and other cities, according to the company.

Stores brands owned by Kingfisher, there are ten European countries, as well as in Turkey and Russia, according to the company's website.