D.I.Y. The Australian giant throws the towel in the U.K.

This is a major setback and an incredibly expensive lesson for Wesfarmers. The Australian retailer spent €444 million in 2016 for the 255 stores of British D.I.Y. retailer Homebase, expecting to win over the U.K. market. In late May 2018, Wesfarmers confirmed that Homebase has been sold to the restructuring specialist Hilco, the owner of HMV, for €1, putting several thousand jobs at risk in “an unbelievable disaster”.

The deal will be completed at the end of June, with the Australian firm expect