ToolBar launch gets off to a powerful start

Testosterone levels at outlet centres are poised to rise with the launch of an ambitious power tool retailer.

ToolBar is the brainchild of Les Banks, a former director of homewares retailer Amys. He believes men are under-catered for in outlet centres, with few shops to browse while their women-folk seek out fashionable bargains.

The first ToolBar opened in Hatfield's Galleria Outlet Centre last week and Banks said takings were twice the level anticipated.

ToolBar will focus on the Stanley and DeWalt brands, giving amateur DIY enthusiasts and professionals a look in. An online presence, which will display the 15,000 product lines available, is hotly anticipated in the coming months.

Banks is keen to expand and said: 'To be in every outlet in the country wouldn't be a problem'. In the short term, he plans to exploit low overheads.