Company Headquarters, 3 Sheldon Square, London

Kingfisher plc (LSE: KGF) is a British multinational retailing company headquartered in London, United Kingdom.^[4] It is the largest home improvement retailer in Europe and the third-largest in the world (behind The Home Depot and Lowe's). It has nearly 900 stores in eight countries across Asia and Europe and its brands include B&Q, Castorama, Brico Dépôt and Screwfix.^[5]

Kingfisher is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.

History[link]

Kingfisher was founded in 1982 by the buyout of the British Woolworths chain by Paternoster Stores Ltd. which later changed its name to Woolworth Holdings plc.^[6] The Company expanded through subsequent acquisitions of companies such as B&Q, Superdrug and Comet.^[6] It was led from 1984 (until his retirement in 2002) by Sir Geoffrey Mulcahy, who became renowned for his taciturn public persona, lengthy decision-making and love of sailing. Largely through his influence, Kingfisher became the major sponsor of British sailor Dame Ellen MacArthur.^[7] It was renamed Kingfisher plc in 1989.^[6]

Further acquisitions of European companies such as Castorama,^[8] BUT S.A.^[9] and Wegert^[10] enabled the Company to grow to become the largest general retail business in the UK. In 1999, Kingfisher attempted a takeover of Asda, one of the UK's largest supermarket chains, only to be beaten by Wal-Mart.^[11] Coupled with an acrimonious battle for control of Castorama,^[12] the resultant share price pressure forced the sale and demerger of several parts of the Company by 2001, including Woolworths (forming the Woolworths Group),^[13] and the demerger of the electricals business to form Kesa Electricals in 2003 – causing the Company to refocus entirely around DIY.^[14]

The Company was led by Gerry Murphy from 2002 until 2008.^[15] In January 2008 Kingfisher appointed Ian Cheshire as Group Chief Executive.^[15] Ian was formerly B&Q's Chief Executive; this role was taken over in April 2009 by Euan Sutherland, who also has the role of Chief Executive of the UK Division of Kingfisher.^[16]

Operations[link]

Kingfisher currently operates nearly 900 stores in eight countries in Asia and Europe. Its main retail brands are B&Q, Castorama, Brico Dépôt, and Screwfix.^[17]

The companies now part of the Kingfisher group are:

• B&Q; operations in the UK, Ireland and China,
• Brico Dépôt; in France, Spain and Poland.
• Castorama; in France, Poland and Russia.
• Hornbach DIY; with over 120 stores across Europe; Kingfisher holds a 21% stake.
• Koçtaş; 50% joint venture in Turkey.
• Screwfix; 200 branches in the UK, plus mail and internet ordering.^[18]

References[link]

External links[link]

	London portal
	Companies portal

• Official site
• Yahoo profile

v t e Kingfisher plc Divisions and subsidiaries Current B&Q · Brico Dépôt · Castorama · Screwfix · TradePoint Former Kesa Electricals (Comet Group · Darty · Wegert)1 · Superdrug2 · Woolworths Group3 Joint ventures and shareholdings Hornbach DIY (21%) · Koçtaş (50%) Other European Retail Round Table · Geoffrey Mulcahy 1 Demerged in 2003  2Sold in 2001  3Demerged in 2001  Category

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This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (December 2010)

Ian Cheshire, born London 12 April 1936 is a Scottish petroleum engineer who developed the Eclipse reservoir simulator. He has most recently worked for Schlumberger where he was a Schlumberger Fellow from 1999 to 2003.^[1]

He was awarded the Anthony F. Lucas Gold Medal by the Society of Petroleum Engineers in 2001. He was also awarded the Queen's Award for Technology in 1985.

References[link]

External links[link]

• IOR Views "Seminar and Dinner Mark Retirement of Professor John Fayers", 9 November 2004

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