Homebase

Homebase is a British home improvement retailer and garden centre, with 323 stores across the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. Founded by Sainsbury's and GB-Inno-BM in 1979, the company has been owned by Home Retail Group (HRG) since 2006. In January 2016, HRG reached an agreement to sell Homebase to Wesfarmers, which plans to rebrand the business under its existing Bunnings Warehouse name.

Homebase recorded sales figures of £1.49 billion for the last financial year (2013–2014). Homebase made an operating profit of £18.9 million for the year 2013–2014.

History

Homebase was founded by the supermarket chain Sainsbury's and Belgian retailer GB-Inno-BM in 1979, as Sainsbury's Homebase. This was to bring a supermarket-style layout to the British Do It Yourself (DIY) market. The first store was in Croydon, opening on 3 March 1981, located on the Purley Way.

In May 1995, Homebase tripled in size, when J Sainsbury plc bought rival store group Texas Homecare, from the Ladbroke Group plc. These stores were rebranded, and converted to the Homebase format, beginning in February 1996, with the store in Longwell Green, Bristol, with the process being completed by 1999. In October 1999, Sainsbury's bought Hampden Group plc, the franchisee of 10 Homebase stores across Ireland.

Homebase (album)

Homebase is the fourth studio album released by hip-hop duo DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince. The album was released in July 1991, reaching #12 on the Billboard 200 charts and #5 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop albums chart. It received generally favorable reviews from critics. The album was certified Platinum and won an American Music Award for Favorite Rap/Hip Hop Album.

Track listing

Samples

A Dog Is a Dog

Caught in the Middle (Love & Life)

Dumb Dancin'

HomeBase

HomeBase was a home improvement warehouse chain in the Western United States based in Irvine, California.

History

Robert J. McNulty and George Handgis founded the chain as a warehouse club called the HomeClub, opening the first two stores in Norwalk and Fountain Valley, California in 1983. It went public in 1985, trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol HBI.

In 1985 it was acquired by Zayre, a Framingham, Massachusetts-based discount department store chain. After Zayre was acquired by Ames, HomeClub was spun off under a new company called Waban Inc., which also owned BJ's Wholesale Club. In 1991 it discontinued its membership program and adopted the HomeBase name shortly thereafter.

The chain expanded to 89 stores by the mid-1990s, becoming the sixth largest home improvement retailer in the United States. Although it outperformed competitors like Orchard Supply Hardware and Builders Square, it could not match the growth or pricing power of Home Depot or Lowe's. On December 5, 2000, after several dramatically unprofitable years, it announced that 67 stores would be converted to a home decorating superstore chain, House2Home, and the remainder closed. House2Home would fare no better and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on November 7, 2001 and was subsequently liquidated in early 2002.