French DIY chain Leroy Merlin has opened its first store in Africa, a 17,500m² store in Greenstone, east of Johannesburg. In addition, the retailer has also launched an online store.
Leroy Merlin, owned by Groupe Adeo, announced its intent to open in South Africa in 2016. Its Campus by Leroy Merlin brand, an educational/training facility aimed at getting consumers interested in DIY, opened in Johannesburg in 2017. It has been part of a pre-launch strategy that includes creating a Workshop Fan Group of enthusiastic DIYers, and Leroy Merlin forming partnerships with local contractors and tradesmen.
The new Johannesburg flagship store is large: typically Leroy Merlin stores range from 6,000m² to 17,000m². This one is 17,500m² and carries not only home improvement but also a substantial range of lifestyle products. It will carry 50,000 SKUs and have a sales staff of 150.
Groupe Adeo owns a string of home improvement, homewares and lifestyle retail brands, including Weldom, Bricocenter, Bricoman, Aki, Kbane, Alice Delice, Zodio and Dompro. It has opened more than 600 stores in the past decade. South Africa is Leroy Merlin’s 13th international market outside France.
Leroy Merlin’s big box home improvement format will compete in an already saturated South African market. This includes Massmart’s Massbuild stores (Builders Express, Builders Warehouse, Builders Trade Depot, Builders Superstore). These are typically 4,000m² to 6,000m² in size. Competition also includes Cashbuild, Spar’s Build It and Steinhoff’s Steinbuild chain.
Leroy Merlin’s strategy will mirror that of another disruptive big box player in the home sector: IKEA (which has not entered South Africa). In short, it is not seeking to compete on usual terms with the four leading chains. The typical positioning for a South African home improvement store is to be largely male oriented, a strong focus on price, and more of an expectation that the customer knows (or thinks they know) DIY.
Rather than positioning itself as a go-to, convenient place to stop into for DIY products, Leroy Merlin is aiming to be a destination in its own right. This means more showrooms, more in-store technology to help consumers choose products, a more female-friendly store environment and a focus on empowering consumers to make their homes better.
