K-Bygg to replace K-Rauta for Kesko DIY in Sweden
The DIY business of Kesko in Sweden has grown rapidly over the last years. During the last five years the revenues have grown by 140%. During the end of last year the Swedish operation amounted to more than 540 million € of revenue.
For the last four years, Kesko has operated two DIY banners: the original K-Rauta and more professional focused K-Bygg. During the four years since the launch of K-Bygg, it has grown almost explosively having reached revenues of 350 million € by the end of last year.
Recently Kesko announced that it is retiring the K-Rauta brand, which it has operated for more than 25 years (first store opened in 1996). Initially this was somewhat surprising considering the long history of the brand. However, when one takes a closer look about the revenue breakdown of the two brands, it becomes rather obvious that K-Bygg is the way to go.
The decision becomes even more logcial as the country manager of Kesko DIY Sweden, Endre Espeseth told in a recent Market interview that K-Rauta has been struggling to reach profitability. In fact K-Rauta has struggled to reach the revenue highs of 2018, even with the revenue bump provided by the pandemic. During the last five years, K-Rauta revenues have come down by more than 43%.
