COMMENT Making the most of a DIY disaster


No 5,880 - September 2020 www.diyweek.net


Director of Editorial: Neil Mead 01622 699110 DIYWeek@datateam.co.uk


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In This Issue


© 2020 Datateam Business Media Ltd. DIY Week incorporates Decor Retailing, DIY Retail Leaders, DIY Superstore, Do-It-Yourself


Retailing, Domestic Electrical Appliances,


Excellence In Garden Retailing, Excellence In Woodcare Retailing, Excellence In Timber Retailing, Excellence In Tile Retailing, Garden Retail Leaders, Garden Retailing, Hardware Merchandiser, Hardware Trade Journal, Homecentre, Home Storage Retailing, The Ironmonger, Ironmongery & Hardware, Lighting, Martineau & Smith’s Monthly Circular, Mercantile Guardian, Superstore Management, Tools Retailing, and Wholesale Leaders. No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means without prior written permission from the publishers. Every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of material published in DIY Week. However, Datateam Business Media Ltd will not be liable for any inaccuracies. The views expressed by contributors are not necessarily those of the editor or publishers. DIY Week is registered at Stationers’ Hall. ISSN 0954-8823. DIY Week is printed on environmentally friendly paper; both text paper and cover stock are elementary chlorine free and sourced from paper suppliers with a well planned environmental policy. This issue of DIY Week includes some editorial photographs provided and paid for by suppliers. Printed by Buxton Press.


P4 / NEWS


The latest headlines and breaking news from across the home improvement and garden sectors


P17 / FLOORING & FLOOR CARE


From its longevity to its unmistakable warmth and beauty, natural hardwood flooring is a firm favourite


‘Despite the early lockdown period,


online sales remained strong and in-store sales recovered quickly once they were allowed to open again’


Founded in 1874


Who hasn’t suffered from the odd DIY disaster? We all make mistakes and quite often it’s through putting them right that we learn more and produce a better result than if the job had gone perfectly first time. I know I’ve made plenty and I never forget them, but this hopefully helps to stop me from making the same mistake again, it’s all part of the learning experience. But when I do get it wrong, make a mistake, or cause some damage, something someone dear to me once said always pops into my head which is that mistakes and the resulting marks or imperfections caused make up part of a story that remind us of times past, and although they may cause a problem and seem annoying at the time, this fades and they actually become important memories and are just part of life’s journey. This is one of the reasons I was so struck by the latest series of TV ads for B&Q; they’ve managed to encapsulate what doing it yourself really means by bringing it to life and making it feel more real. We’ve seen many DIY ads over the years which show jobs being completed easily and with a perfect end result, but the old video clips used in the B&Q ads show all sorts of home improvement projects being undertaken, mixed in with key life events that I feel will resonate and touch people, I know they did with me. I think the tag line of ‘you don’t buy a life you build one’ is also very clever and will get people thinking and hopefully deciding to tackle a few more DIY tasks themselves, which is good news for whole trade. While on the subject of B&Q, parent company Kingfisher Group posted its half year financial


results recently (see news story on p6), which despite all the doom and gloom of the current Covid crisis make interesting and encouraging reading. They basically serve to underline the fact that our industry has managed to navigate these choppy waters pretty well, compared to many others, and make the best of a bad situation. So despite the early lockdown period, online sales remained strong and in-store sales recovered quickly once they were allowed to open again, with good demand from customers deciding to use the enforced time at home to redecorate. And quite a few recent surveys predict this trend to continue, with people spending money saved from commuting or holidays on improving their homes instead. This just goes to show that every cloud has a silver lining and that the pandemic hasn’t been a complete DIY disaster.


Director of Editorial, Neil Mead: DIYWeek@Datateam.co.uk


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P22 / PET & BIRD CARE


Vital advises retailers to think ahead with wild bird staples in time for peak wild bird season


www.diyweek.net P24 / SMART HOMES


Schneider Electric has unveiled its next evolution in smart home technology with new Wiser sensors and controls


SEPTEMBER 2020 DIY WEEK 3 Published by


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