BHETA ECONOMIC SNAPSHOT BHETA EC BHETA EC CONOMIC SNAPS


SHOT WHATHAT’S NEW? AT


The latest facts and figures from the British Home Enhancement Trades Association (BHETA) and what they mean for suppliers to the home improvement industry .


Tr TA B DIY HETA home


impr ovement and garden sector director Paul Grinsell says: “Someone who has


worked on the supplier side at a senior level in home impr ovement/ Y,, garden, and housewares companies over many years made a comparison between their dif fering attitudes towards ‘challenging times’.


He concluded that of the


thr ee it was home impr ovement/ DIY that tended to be the most what he termed ‘lugubrious’ about getting out ther e fighting and rising to the challenge.


“Being the positive individual that I am, I’m not sur e whether I entir ely agr ee, but it’s probably fair to say


A) and w


that selling home improvement tools and consumables is not considered one of the most go-ahead sectors. “So, r eading the latest figur es for UK plc, I was struck by the fact that we now have the highest employment rate since comparable r ecor ds began and conversely the joint lowest unemployment rate since 1975. W also have a slight downward turn in inflation, the first for a while, a slight upturn in r etail sales, slowing the last three months’ decline, and just a few mor e first-time buyers clambering onto the housing ladder


ment rate since 1975. We We ousing ladder r..


“Alongside these positives, the ‘Internationale Eisenwarenmesse’, the leading trade fair for the industry took place last month and showed its 47,000 trade visitors what’s new and upcoming in terms of pr oduct.


While not every new product is immediately suitable for every UK home impr ovement business, it was refr eshing to feel the enthusiasm and see the possibilities. Just a week later one of this sectors’ fastest growing retailers, T oolstation attended one of TA’s popular speaker for ums. Its MD, James Mackenzie enthralled a packed house, showcasing his company’s combination of traditional reliability and convenient, efficient service with the latest digital technology to communicate that pr oposition. It was a r evelation of all that’s new in marketing to customers. “Okay,


ater


etailers Toolstation attended on BHETAHETA’


To i n y, I appreciate I’ve been


selective, ther e’s a more complicated overall pictur e, and I’ve ignor ed the recent appalling weather


r,, but as we


find ourselves in the key sales period in home and gar den impr ovement, it’s time to take the positives and get out ther e.”


r,,


Consumer Price Index – F ebruar y 2018


The Consumer Prices Index including owner occupiers’ housing costs (CPIH) 12-month inflation rate was 2.5% in Febr uary 2018, down fr om 2.7% in January 2018. The largest downward contributions to the change in the rate came fr om transport and food prices, which rose by less than a year ago. Falling prices for accommodation services also had a downwar d ef fect. Rising prices for footwear produced the lar gest, partially of fsetting, upward contribution.


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