TIDMKGF
RNS Number : 3883G
Kingfisher PLC
25 November 2020
Kingfisher plc (the 'Company')
Kingfisher plc acquires NeedHelp services marketplace
25 November 2020: Kingfisher plc, the international home
improvement retailer, today announces that it has acquired
NeedHelp, one of Europe's leading home improvement services
marketplaces, for a total cash consideration of c.EUR10 million. As
part of the transaction, Guillaume de Kergariou, the founder of
NeedHelp, has reinvested proceeds from the sale in a 20% interest
in the business, resulting in Kingfisher owning 80%.
NeedHelp ( www.needhelp.com ) is an innovative B2B2C(1) online
platform that connects customers who need home improvement help,
either in-store or online, with vetted professional tradespeople
and other skilled experts. The acquisition represents an important
step forward for one of Kingfisher's key priorities under its
recently announced 'Powered by Kingfisher' strategy: to build a
mobile-first and service-orientated customer experience.
NeedHelp was founded in France in 2014 by Guillaume de
Kergariou, who will continue as CEO to lead the team and grow the
business. While most of its business is currently in France,
NeedHelp also operates in Switzerland and has recently expanded
into Germany, Belgium, Austria, and the Netherlands. Through its
open architecture, NeedHelp already provides its services to
customers in more than 500 stores including Kingfisher's French
businesses, Castorama and Brico Dépôt, as well as to a growing
number of leading home improvement retailers.
NeedHelp is growing rapidly. The company has tripled its GMV(2)
and revenue every year since launch. In 2020 the number of jobs
completed through its platform is set to reach 58,000. With more
people seeking to improve their homes since the COVID-19 pandemic
began, the demand for NeedHelp has accelerated with its monthly
revenue doubling after the first lockdown period.
NeedHelp's strong growth is being driven by its highly
differentiated proposition:
-- It provides customers with service options from a range of
channels including retail partners' stores, retail partners'
e-commerce sites, and from its own site.
-- Unlike other service marketplaces which aim to provide a
directory of tradespeople or 'jobbers', NeedHelp focuses on the
specialist skills needed for home improvement . The most popular
home improvement projects offered via NeedHelp are kitchen
installations, painting, flooring and bathroom renovations. Other
jobs undertaken include gardening, furniture assembly and house or
furniture moving.
-- It operates a data-driven end-to-end platform that manages
all bookings, online payments, vetting processes, and rating of
tradespeople. This delivers both confidence to customers and added
value to tradespeople, including insurance, professional business
set-up support and assistance with tax returns. Customer
satisfaction is high, with an average rating of 4.85 out of 5(3)
.
Along with developing NeedHelp's business in Europe with
existing and new retail partners, Kingfisher also plans to roll out
the platform in the UK and Poland. In the UK, NeedHelp will be able
to support B&Q's customers who need assistance with their home
improvement projects, as well as cooperate with Screwfix's customer
base of trade professionals. NeedHelp will continue to operate as
an independent company and will seek to offer its installation
capabilities to retail customers across the Home Improvement
sector, through its open architecture model.
Commenting on the acquisition, Thierry Garnier, Kingfisher's
CEO, said: "To serve customers effectively today, we need to be
more digital and service orientated, while leveraging our strong
store assets. Online services marketplaces are key to the future of
home improvement retail and NeedHelp is an established and
fast-growing player in this arena. Its acquisition accelerates our
digital capabilities and extends the services that we can provide
our customers - two central components of our future growth
strategy.
"Looking ahead, we will develop NeedHelp quickly in the UK and
Poland by leveraging our extensive store network and our
differentiated banners that serve both home improvers and
tradespeople. This represents an exciting opportunity to create a
more complete services offer and to help make better homes
accessible for everyone."
Guillaume de Kergariou, NeedHelp's founder and CEO, added: "We
are delighted to be cementing our relationship with Kingfisher
through this transaction. The additional investment and expertise
that Kingfisher will bring, as well as the ability to help support
its huge customer base, opens an exciting new chapter for us. We
will continue investing in our technology, product and operational
processes to drive even greater customer satisfaction. We are proud
to support the growth of the home improvement market in Europe,
through our open architecture model."
JJ Van Oosten, Kingfisher's Chief Customer and Digital Officer,
who has been appointed as NeedHelp's Chairman, commented:
"NeedHelp's success has been built by delivering ease and assurance
to customers who want to improve their homes, and the tradespeople
with the skills to support them. We know the business well, it is a
natural fit with our retail banners, and it accelerates our service
proposition. Kingfisher is committed to supporting NeedHelp in
unlocking its significant growth potential, by promoting and
growing NeedHelp's open architecture with its existing retail
partners, as well as with new retail partners across Europe."
Footnotes
(1) Business to Business to Consumer
(2) Gross Merchandise Value, or GMV, represents the value of
completed services running through NeedHelp's platform
(3) NeedHelp customer survey data
Contacts
Tel: Email:
Investor Relations +44 (0) 20 7644 investorenquiries@kingfisher.com
1082
Media Relations +44 (0) 20 7644 corpcomms@kingfisher.com
1030
Teneo +44 (0) 20 7420 Kfteam@teneo.com
3184
About Kingfisher plc
Kingfisher plc is an international home improvement company with
approximately 1,370 stores, supported by a team of 78,000
colleagues. We operate in eight countries across Europe under
retail banners including B&Q, Castorama, Brico Dépôt, Screwfix,
TradePoint and Koçta . We offer home improvement products and
services to consumers and trade professionals who shop in our
stores and via our e-commerce channels. At Kingfisher, our purpose
is to make home improvement accessible for everyone.
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