COMMENT


A far worse market than we have ever known?


I


has long been one of those awful trite truisms, that, just when you think you are at the bottom of the barrel, some clever so-and-so comes along and finds a trapdoor in said barrel’s derriere and whoosh, down you go again. Ii’s equally true, and equally trite, that the media is its own worst enemy, so adept have we become at talking things down. Over the years, there have been times when, to read the papers, you’d think we were all heading off to hell in the old handcart, yet when you actually talked to people, you find that it’s not anything like as bad or as difficult as the media is portraying it.


I’m sorry to say, gentle readers, that now is not one of those times. It is tough as the toughest of old boots out there. It doesn’t matter whether you are looking at what’s going on in the wider world or closer to home, there are things that are hampering businesses everywhere you look. And I’m not just talking stopping them from making stonking great profits, but, in some cases, meaning they are struggling for their very survival. The market feels full of uncertainty, with a distinct lack of consumer confidence, and construction insolvencies rising again. Not only that, but, as we are still only in July; the full, cumulative impact of April’s rise on National Insurance and the Minimum Wage have yet to be properly felt.


I’ve talked to numerous merchants and manufacturers lately, many of whom are saying that the market is as bad as they’ve ever known it. For some, it’s worse than when Covid first hit. Others are so wary of jinxing the few green shoots of recovery they can see, that they are just keeping quiet.


Not all of it makes sense. For many, the


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difficulties are of making a profit sufficient to keep the company afloat whilst battling competitors who are running all over the place offering daft low prices to anyone who wants them. Yet if you talk to householders, they can’t believe how expensive everything has suddenly become.


Has the Downing Street game of Buckaroo (or the older readers) really tanked the economy for us? Or are we just in a particularly poor part of the general economic cycle at the moment? According to much of the chatter, both on and off the stage, at the BMF Conference in Spain last month, there are hopeful signs, if you know where to look for them.


While there are some for whom the market is as bad as it’s been for years, there were other merchants who were quietly saying that they’ve been busier than they thought they would be. There were suppliers who were wondering whether they could keep up with demand from certain customers.


The changes that the government is bringing in to the planning system, the Industrial Strategy, the strong underlying demand for housing from a growing population and relatively low unemployment, the push to net zero boosting sales of heat pumps – all things that could help to boost the sector.


Until then though, the building materials supply chain is likely to double down on what it does best: keeping quality control high, focusing on customer service, building and developing relationships with suppliers and customers, and weathering whatever gets thrown at it. That’s why we love it, right? BMJ


Fiona Russell-Horne Group Managing Editor - BMJ


CIRCULATION


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“


It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief,


Charles Dickens


CONTENTS 4 Newsround


What’s happening in the sector 8 News Extra


The BMF Conference 2025 in Barcelona covered a range of topics


18 People Who’s moving where, and 10 Minutes With


20 Business Helpdesk BMF Members have access to a new communications package


21 Viewpoint Our guest columnists talk Future Homes.


24 BMJ Industry Awards The Nominations list. Get your votes in now


26 Merchant Focus Keeping it real in Croydon


28 Marketing Focus Modern ways of marketing merchant business


32 Sealants, Adhesives & Chemicals


Trends and developments


34 Roofing Batten issues raised


36 BMF Industry Voice The latest from the Builders Merchants Federation


39 Product News What’s new from suppliers


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