Bunnings Group, trading as Bunnings Warehouse, is an Australian household hardware chain. The chain has been owned by Wesfarmers since 1994, and has stores in Australia and New Zealand.Bunnings was founded in Perth, Western Australia in 1886, by two brothers who had immigrated from England. Initially, a limited company focused on sawmilling, it became a public company in 1952 and subsequently expanded into the retail sector, purchasing several hardware stores. Bunnings began to expand into other states in the 1990s and opened its first warehouse-style store in Melbourne in 1994. As of 2016, the chain has 295 stores and over 30,000 employees.Bunnings has a market share of around 50 percent in the Australian Do-It-Yourself hardware market, with competing chains including Home Timber & Hardware, Mitre 10 and various independent retailers like Sydney Tools and Total Tools around Australia.Bunnings runs community events outside or in its stores, including sausage sizzles and do it yourself workshops.