We are the market leader in the UK and France, two of the largest retail markets in Europe. Each has large, relatively wealthy populations and levels of home ownership are high. Compared with the whole European Union (EU), a relatively higher proportion of consumer retail expenditure is on home improvement products and services. The home improvement markets in these countries are well-developed, large and have benefited from increasing consumer wealth and growth in the number of homes. Consumers are served by large, well-established national retailers and small local specialists.

One major difference between the UK and France is the level of consumer debt, which is significantly higher in the UK.