ManoMano takes aim at UK DIY market in debut year

After setting out to disrupt the UK DIY scene – predominantly occupied by B&Q and Homebase – ManoMano generated sales of £4.4m in the year to April.

Although it did not disclose a profit figure, the pureplay said it has secured partnerships with 100 local merchants and has listed 185,000 products during the period.

Disrupting the market

ManoMano claims that by providing a “wider choice at more competitive prices than current players” it has become the “leading challenger in Europe”.

At a press conference held by competitor Kingfisher last month, its boss Véronique Laury listed ManoMano as one of a number of factors that had contributed to sluggish trade at the DIY giant’s French retailers. 

As part of its One Kingfisher transformation strategy, Laury has stepped-up efforts to bolster the business’s digital credentials so that Kingfisher may hope to compete in the long term.

But ManoMano, albeit the UK’s first DIY pureplay, is just the latest in a line of antagonists to have challenged the status quo of the home improvement sector. 

DIY contenders

Some disruption has been caused at the hand of Australian conglomerate Wesfarmers, who snapped up Homebase last year in a deal worth £340m. 

Wesfarmers has commenced the conversion of Homebase stores into its Bunnings Warehouse brand and, by altering Homebase‘s traditional proposition, is set to go head-to-head with the UK’s current market leader B&Q.

ManoMano co-founders Philippe de Chanville and Christian Raisson said: “To disrupt such a competitive market like the UK and build a community for the long term, you need to stand out by the quality of your offer, not just by the quantity of products available or the low prices advertised on the website.

“This conviction has driven us from the very beginning.

“That is why we like to say that we are delivering comfort, trust and smiles, more than products and services.

“They are our main ingredients to reinvent DIY and Gardening in the UK – and everywhere else in Europe.”

British ambition

Founded in mid-2013, ManoMano now operates in six European territories and says the UK home improvement and gardening market, worth £38bn, was always a priority for it.

Now its second largest market after France, the etailer aspires to triple its product offering in the UK and is targeting sales of £10m by the end of 2017.

It has projected a €100m (£86m) turnover in the UK market by the end of 2019.

A fixer-upper

The start-up is keen to position itself as a key player in offering advice and support and is developing services for use by its customers and selling partners.

ManoMano currently operates in France, Belgium, the UK, Italy, Spain and Germany.

It has grown its business from €1M in 2013 to €90M in 2016, and is anticipating a sales volume of more than €250M this year.