Kingfisher, the British home improvement group behind the UK's B&Q retail chain, has announced it plans to double the size of its business in Poland in the next five years. The group says the expected return to Poland of a million migrants will fuel demand for home improvement and cushion the impact of recession there.

Warsaw is already home to the company's largest store based on sales volume. It now plans to have 100 Castorama DIY retail stores and Brico-Depot outlets, which target the building trade, within five years, up from the current tally of 48 in Poland.

Poland was "absolutely one of our key investment targets", Kingfisher Chief Executive Ian Cheshire is reported to have said. "It's still got a lot of catching up to do and a lot of growth in real wages yet to come."

Many Polish migrants are expected to return home this year, attracted by increasing local wages and the strength of the Polish currency, the zloty.

Robin Bowman