The new store, in Vange, Basildon, is 57,000 square feet and offers more than 30,000 home improvement and garden products as well as paint mixing, key cutting, a garden centre, timber cutting and in-store DIY workshops.
Conversions of the 255 Homebases began this year, with St Albans first and numbers now being accelerated to 15-20 by the end of the year. Kent stores were among the first to be converted. Worle (Weston-super-Mare) is next, with Chichester and Basingstoke are also among planned conversions.
Basildon complex manager Neil Potter said: "All our team members have worked really hard to get the store ready for opening and have undertaken many hours of training to make sure we have the expertise to help customers with home or garden projects."
Another Homebase, in Basildon's Mayflower Retail Park, has closed. Bunnings bought Homebase for £340m in 2016. Latest results from UK and Ireland in August show a £54m loss for the year ending 30 June 2017. Revenue for the first financial year of Bunnings' ownership was £1.2 billion.
Trading was "affected as Homebase commenced repositioning to its core home improvement and garden offer. Four Bunnings pilots opened by June "with encouraging early performance".The focus is "on strengthening leadership and talent across the business".
Conversions of the 255 Homebases began this year, with St Albans first and numbers now being accelerated to 15-20 by the end of the year. Kent stores were among the first to be converted. Worle (Weston-super-Mare) is next, with Chichester and Basingstoke are also among planned conversions.
Basildon complex manager Neil Potter said: "All our team members have worked really hard to get the store ready for opening and have undertaken many hours of training to make sure we have the expertise to help customers with home or garden projects."
Another Homebase, in Basildon's Mayflower Retail Park, has closed. Bunnings bought Homebase for £340m in 2016. Latest results from UK and Ireland in August show a £54m loss for the year ending 30 June 2017. Revenue for the first financial year of Bunnings' ownership was £1.2 billion.
Trading was "affected as Homebase commenced repositioning to its core home improvement and garden offer. Four Bunnings pilots opened by June "with encouraging early performance".The focus is "on strengthening leadership and talent across the business".
