The BMBI results for Quarter 2 show the phenomenal resilience of the sector in action. April, May and June couldn’t have been more different. April, in almost full lockdown, fell -76.5% year-on-year, May recovered to -39.9% as restrictions started to ease, and June grew +2.2%, helped by two more trading days this year, more relaxed restrictions and a booming Landscaping category.

Year-on-year

Total Builders Merchants value sales in Q2 2020 (unadjusted for trading days) fell -38.6% compared with the same period in 2019.

Landscaping the strongest performer, was down -13.3% over the same period. The two largest product categories – Heavy Building Materials and Timber & Joinery Products – fell -38.4% and -39.8% respectively. Tools was weakest (-58.6%), followed by Kitchens & Bathrooms (-57.9%) and Plumbing, Heating & Electrical (-53.1%).

Quarter-on-quarter

Total value sales dropped by -27.2% in Q2 2020 compared with the previous quarter. All categories declined except for Landscaping (+38.7%). Heavy Building Materials was down -26.7% and Timber & Joinery Products by -28.1%.

Month-on-month

However, it was more positive for Timber & Joinery Products month-on-month, as the only category among three to show an improvement in sales in June 2020 compared to June 2019 (+1.4%). Fencing & Gates did well and decking more than doubled in value. The biggest category surge over this period was from Landscaping (+50.3%).

Index

The quarterly BMBI index for Total Builders Merchants was 76.4, with Landscaping ahead of all categories at 138.8. The index for Timber & Joinery Products was 78.0.