UK’s first Bunnings piques interest

PERTH, Australia — Britain’s first Bunnings store has aroused curiosity, but will take longer than expected to get in the black. The banner’s owner, Wesfarmers, bought out the UK-based Homebase chain last year with the intention of converting its stores to the Bunnings brand, a mainstay in Australia but a novelty to British shoppers. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Wesfarmers CEO Richard Goyder has declined to promise that the UK and Ireland operation, which posted a $48 million AUD loss in the first half of the fiscal year, will turn a profit in the second.