COLOGNE (dpa-AFX) - The mild temperatures in March and April have awakened the desire of many people in Germany to get active in their own gardens. This year, DIY stores and garden centers got off to a better start to their all-important spring business than in 2023. The industry grew by 4.4 percent and achieved sales of 4.76 billion euros, according to the German DIY, Construction and Garden Trade Association (BHB) on Wednesday. In March, the stores even recorded an increase of 9.6 percent.

The markets in the soils, seeds and garden chemicals sector recorded particularly strong growth. According to the industry association, sales here were more than 43 percent higher than in the previous year. There was also strong growth in the living greenery (+39.4 percent) and garden tools/irrigation and drainage (+36.1 percent) product ranges. According to Bauhaus, mowing robots and useful plants such as herbs and cocktail tomatoes were particularly in demand, while Obi's products included plant, garden and raised bed soil as well as bark mulch.

BHB Managing Director Peter Wüst was cautiously optimistic about the development: "We are pleased that the general conditions, which presented us with plenty of challenges last year, have enabled us to get off to a much better start this time." Nevertheless, the markets did not perform well in all areas. There were significant declines in renovation and construction products such as tiles (-15.2), furniture (-9.7) and construction elements (-8.2). Politicians are not providing "the necessary impetus, although the demand for new and renovated housing is steadily increasing and inflation and money markets are gradually moving in the right direction again", criticized Wüst.

Last year, the construction markets were almost nine percent below the previous year's level in the first quarter. This was due to the bad weather and consumer restraint. The sector suffered particularly badly as a result. In 2023 as a whole, sales in Germany fell by 3.1 percent despite higher prices./cr/DP/stk