Page 34 - HW FEB 2021

global eyes
Isolating Europeans dive
into DIY but are wary of DIFM
EUROPEAN CONSULTANCY USP released a report on Europe’s DIY marketplace at the end of January, usefully summing up current and future prospects.
The whitepaper entitled The COVID- 19 Impact on the European Home Improvement Market confirms our own experience that, after an initial slump, the market has thrived.
Says author Dirk Hoogenboom: “Consumers started to spend more time indoors in their houses due to lock downs and being forced to work from home.
“In doing so, two of the three main drivers behind the surge in home improvement jobs were fulfilled; without the need to travel to the office & limited outdoor activities, more time was available to pick up home improvement projects and, by spending more time indoors, consumers were confronted with possible home improvement projects
much more.”
USP has also been interviewing
consumers in 11 European countries about the impact the pandemic had on their home improvement behaviour.
As far back as April last year, already almost one in five European consumers (and one in four millennials) indicated that they were doing more home improvement than usual due to the pandemic.
As of January, says USP, this trend has increased slightly with almost one in four European consumers (and almost one
in three millennials) indicating that they are undertaking more, mainly decorative, DIY and home improvement.
In contrast, Do It For Me (DIFM) in Europe has suffered due to consumers’ understandable reluctance to allow tradies into their homes.
Indeed, although the situation is
becoming more relaxed, fully half of the Europeans polled by USP said that they would rather postpone DIFM jobs for now.
What of the outlook? USP’s poll indicates the good times for DIY will continue and that over a quarter of European consumers expect to spend more money on probably bigger home improvement tasks in 2021 than they did in 2020.
Barriers to this ongoing boom in DIY, says USP, involve countries where DIY stores are closed (like in the Netherlands).
Even though consumers have been ordering home improvement products online at a higher rate than ever, closure of the DIY stores will have a negative impact, says USP.
You can access the full USP report using the following link:
www.usp-mc.nl/en/corona-update/
32 NZHJ | FEBRUARY 2021
MORE AT www.hardwarejournal.co.nz