Apeldoorn / Bornheim, October 12, 2021. From tomorrow, DIY fans, gardening enthusiasts, and professional customers in the largest city in Gelderland Province will also have access to Hornbach’s enormous product range. With sales area of 16,500 square meters*, the new DIY store and garden center in Apeldoorn is now Hornbach’s 16th location in the Netherlands and the first to have energy-neutral operations thanks to 3,000 solar collectors on the roof. The company has invested around Euro 33.5 million in acquiring the land and in building and fitting out the store. Further growth in the Netherlands is firmly planned.
“It is an amazing achievement by the whole team that this new store can be opened just twelve months after building work started, and that despite tougher conditions due to the coronavirus pandemic”, comments Jan Hornbach, Managing Director International at Hornbach Baumarkt AG and a member of the sixth generation of the family-managed company. Pointing to the high pace of expansion with seven new store openings in six years, he adds: “In terms of the number of locations, the Netherlands is now our Group’s second-largest region. Our business here is developing really well and is just as popular with people as ever. We are definitely planning further growth.”
Stores due to be opened soon in Enschede and Nijmegen
Hornbach will already open its 17th location in the Netherlands next spring, in this case in Enschede close to the German border. “And preparations for our 18th location in Nijmegen are already progressing at full steam”, explains Evert de Goede, Hornbach’s Managing Director in the Netherlands. “At the end of the year, we will also open a new innovative retail format close to our existing store in Kerkrade: Hornbach Vloeren will offer customers a huge selection of floorings and close the gap between DIY stores and traditional specialist retailers.”
New store benefits from top location and ambitious energy targets
Hornbach’s new DIY store and garden center in Apeldoorn is located directly on a much-used ring road on the edge of town, just five minutes from the A50 freeway. “That means our store is easy to reach both for the 160,000 inhabitants of Apeldoorn and for DIY enthusiasts and professional customers from the surrounding region”, adds Evert de Goede. “Not only that, it is the first store in our country that we aim to operate on an energy-neutral basis. Sustainability played a key role when we planned and built the store. We intend to use the energy generated by 3,000 solar collectors on the roof of the store ourselves and to feed part of it into the public grid.”
State-of the-art specialist departments and extensive services
As well as the large drive-in facility for construction materials, highlights at the new store in Apeldoorn include a bathroom and kitchen center with 3D planning, a picture framing service, the modern paint competence center, and a large garden center including a pet supplies department. More than 150 staff are on hand to support customers with projects in their houses, apartments, and gardens. “Many of our new colleagues have professional experience in trades and the construction industry. They will provide home improvement fans and professionals with specialist advice and offer optimal support with our numerous services. Our tradespeople service, which supports those customers who cannot or do not wish to implement planned projects themselves, is also set to play a major role”, explains Evert de Goede.
(*Weighted by BHB sector association standard: around 11,800 square meters )
The Hornbach store in Apeldoorn is open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays to Fridays, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays, and from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays.
