DIY and gardening retail saw growth of 12% in May 2013 versus May 2012, according to the latest research by GfK, making the sector the 'key to growth' for retail durables.
The sector outperformed all others, including small domestic appliances (up 8.5%) and consumer electronics (down 16.8%) for month-on-month percentage growth.

Online sales in DIY and gardening were up 35% compared with the same month last year. According to GfK, "strong performance over the bank holiday weekends was driven by the improved weather conditions in May and saw growth for many exterior categories buoyed by the likely pent up demand caused by the cold start to the year."

According to the year-on-year growth in value calculations, DIY and gardening was flat at -1%, resulting in a figure of £10bn, while the year-to-date growth in value was -1.2% at £4.5bn.