Saint-Gobain is still looking for a buyer for Lapeyre, who "is doing much better"

INTERVIEW

The Saint-Gobain building materials group is still "looking for a buyer" for its chain of Lapeyre house equipment stores, which "is doing much better", its CEO Pierre-André de Chalendar said on Thursday.

"We are looking for a buyer," Pierre-André de Chalendar recalled on Europe 1.

But the CEO wants to carry out this operation "without rushing, especially since Lapeyre is much better".

"We take our time," he added.

"It's important to have a great long-term solution for Lapeyre."

Pierre-André de Chalendar observed that Lapeyre had had "a very, very strong summer" after the trough of the confinement period, with the months of June and July "far above last year".

"In general, we had a very strong recovery from June-July and even stronger at Lapeyre," he added.

Stimulus plan: the CEO of Saint-Gobain praised "a very good plan"

The CEO of Saint-Gobain recalled that the group had chosen to sell to building professionals, which means that Lapeyre, which addresses the general public, "is not at the heart (of) the group's system" .

Asked about the recovery plan presented Thursday by the government, the CEO of Saint-Gobain praised "a very good plan".

"I believe there are a lot of good things (...) a lot of measures for business that are important," he said.

Pierre-André de Chalendar in particular raised the envelope of 4 billion euros dedicated to the energy renovation of public buildings with "good priorities" such as schools and hospitals.

"It's a good investment for the State (...) Public buildings are late."