Page 26 - HW August 2020

kitchens & bathrooms
Spending on kitchens & bathrooms has surged, post-lockdown, but it hasn’t “just happened”. What else has been driving this reno-boom? Steve Bohling reports.
STARTING WITH THE state of the market – has it really been as much of a boom in kitchens & bathrooms as we’ve all been hearing?
By way of litmus testing, I sought input from Mitre 10 from the DIY retailers, PlaceMakers among those dealing mainly with the trades and the NKBA as the voice of Kiwi kitchen & bathroom specialists.
While it emphatically hasn’t been “business as usual” since the
end of March, I was also keen to gauge whether this explosion in demand for kitchens & bathrooms in particular represents the “new normal” or just a “new normal”.
DEMAND AND DIY RETAIL
To take the pulse of kitchens & bathrooms from the DIY retail side of the business I turn to Mitre 10’s newly appointed General Manager Solutions, Chris Peak.
Chris says that overall, post-lockdown demand across Mitre 10 stores has been “double digit across the network” and that kitchens & bathrooms is “no exception”.
“We’re seeing huge demand from customers who have created extensive to-do lists during the lockdown and that continues,” he says.
“From the demand point of view, I’d say we’re exceptionally pleased with the growth that we have seen.
“Pre-Covid we were already experiencing double digit growth and, post-lockdown, we’ve actually seen demand increase even further beyond that.”
Of course it’s a given that, in tightening economic cycles, typically, spending on DIY increases dramatically.
Having said this, Chris Peak o ers that current demand has been “quite di erent to what we’ve seen in other periods of economic turbulence” like the GFC.
“ e borders are closed and nobody’s travelling. We have also spent very long periods of time in our bubbles and add
to that post-lockdown we’ve also seen increasing numbers of people continuing to work from home, so that’s quite a di erent dynamic than we’ve experienced previously.
“So all of that has really added to the home environment, which has become a much bigger focus, and consumers have really cracked into improving their interiors, which is re ecting in our sales.”
Sales in kitchens & bathrooms are up across the board, both big ticket and small, according to eresa Humphreys, Mitre 10’s Merchandise Manager Showrooms: “At one end of the spectrum you’ve got a whole lot of people interested in tiny living and making small spaces work much better for them.
“At the other end, you’ve got a lot of bigger kitchens and bigger designer bathrooms. So we’re seeing both ends of that spectrum really take o .
“We have got two ranges across kitchen cabinetry – one is the Impressions, which is our more a ordable range, leading into our Designer range.
“And sales for both have essentially exploded – our kitchen consultants are booked for weeks out and the demand on our design team in stores is exponential at present!”
Looking further out, in terms of an outlook, when pushed, Chris Peak, along with most others in the channel, is wisely advising “caution” around what may or may not happen in the next six months.
Still, he will say: “It just feels as though we’re in a bit of a bubble at the moment.
“It’ll be interesting to see what does actually transpire, especially from a trade perspective.”
Taps for all tastes
Felton Industries’ distinctive new high-end, minimalist Tate tapware range (top right) offers both conventional tapware and a selection of digital mixers. Featuring Swiss technology and German components the Tate range “encapsulates the perfect combination of form, function and nish, presented in a range of exquisite colours.”
Also new and proudly 100% designed in NZ, the Jaz tapware range (above) embodies an effortlessly contemporary look for the kitchen or bathroom with its soft silhouette.
The City range (top left) of classic kitchen, bathroom and laundry taps are manufactured from DZR brass and tted with quality German headworks for superior performance and durability.
www.felton.co.nz
24 NZHJ | AUGUST 2020
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