INDUSTRY COMMENT: YEAR IN REVIEW


HANDY’S HIGHLIGHTS


Mark Moseley Sales & Marketing Director, Handy


It has been a roller coaster of a year for Handy! This past year has presented both its share of challenges


(not forgetting the heatwave) and many positive moments. Earlier in the year, we refreshed our company brand identity - signifying the success of our own brand strengths as a company, since we were founded in 1938. Our new warehouse extension is now fully operational, and our stock levels have increased in the preparation for the upcoming pre-season. We expanded many of our


product lines including Webb Garden Power and Greenworks Tools and increased our investment in marketing, public relations, and sales support. We are so pleased to bring on board recognised gardening expert Adam Woolcott to expand our


customer reach and add further weight to our credentials as the UK’s leading garden and DIY machinery supplier.


It has been wonderful to exhibit at Glee, Gardeners World LIVE and Saltex this year. We were able to see our customers and make new ones while staying up to date with all that is happening in the gardening industry. This year has seen many


product recognition mentions, but we are especially happy to see our Garden Blower/Vacuum brands - The Handy, Webb Garden Power and Greenworks - getting recognised by The Independent news.


This year also marked the establishment of a brand- new team to work exclusively with the Cramer Tool range (specialist commercial gardening equipment). So far, it has proven to be an incredible success. To date, we have signed up more than 30 dealerships and this will continue to expand in 2023. As 2023 approaches, we


are better placed than ever to support our partners, with improved margins and service levels - we’re excited to grow together.


FASTEST YEAR EVER


Kimberley Hornby Managing Director, Hornby Whitefoot PR


If there was an award for the fastest year ever to pass, then 2022 would be the lucky recipient. In a year


of significant change, we looked ahead to 2022 with a sense of trepidation, coming off the back of two crazy years as the nation turned to their homes and gardens as a place of sanctuary. Surely the bubble was going to burst eventually? Seemingly not as much as we feared. There is no question that


www.diyweek.net


we remain in a period of ongoing growth. This growth may have slowed but growth, nonetheless. In a post-pandemic world shaped by war and a cost-of-living crisis, these handmade sanctuaries are just as important as ever.


The biggest change this year has been a more prominent move towards more sustainable practices. With ethical consumerism shaping the agenda. This year we have seen more brands recognise that sustainability is not simply a fad or a trend, but a planet saving imperative. There is a long way to go yet, but we’re on track and we’re already working with suppliers that have gone above and beyond. With brands like this, the future is already looking a little brighter.


WHERE ARE WE NOW?


Will Jones Chief Operating Officer, BHETA


DIY has changed exponentially over the last couple of years, with consumer perceptions of do-it-yourself improving


radically in that


time. The category has been transformed with DIY once again a mainstream activity for a whole new generation.


So, no surprise that market expansion was stratospheric during the various Covid lockdowns. The good news is that we are still seeing new consumers introduced to DIY and if anything, having ‘got the bug’, returning to the market to undertake more complex projects, up-spec tools and equipment originally purchased in a time of inexperience. With new habits entrenched, this remains fundamentally good news, but having said that, we all know that now we find ourselves in a massively challenging time. We are in a cost-of-living crisis, those that can still afford it are rushing off on holiday while they can, supply chain issues remain, the energy crisis bites with a level of inflation not seen since 1975, and the overall economic predictions are hardly positive. So, let us look at where the DIY and garden market stands. Thanks to its partnership with GlobalData and contacts with other data providers, BHETA has all the statistics and some very well- informed predictions. The BHETA Quarterly Market Report shows the value of the DIY & Gardening to have declined by 10.9% year on year to the end of September and forecast to be -10.1% lower by year end. Of course, that is against extraordinarily robust growth in 2020 and 2021, so it has still been a good year in the context of the last five years. And while it might look like tough times compared to 2021, Kingfisher plc still reports expected profits for the year of around £745m. We can add to this the bounce-back in the kitchen, bathroom and flooring sectors as more homeowners accept tradespeople into their homes.


Looking ahead, 2023 will of course hold significant challenges as the Bank of England predicts the UK will enter recession. Disposable income will be a challenge, but inflation should start to reduce, and if we do enter recession, we are hoping that it will be shallow and still give suppliers and retailers conditions in which they can still make money - albeit growth will be harder to achieve. So, what has BHETA been doing and what is it planning to do to help members manage and benefit from these complex circumstances as much as they can? It is a positive mix of reliable market facts, retailer networking and strategic advice including training and contacts to enable members to take advantage of the opportunities that undoubtedly remain. For the record, BHETA has hosted over 50 webinars in the last year providing relevant information and support on topics such as digital marketing, B2C strategy and packaging regulations. There were also twelve retailer networking forums and MTB events with key UK customers such as Homebase, Amazon, John Lewis and Toolstation.


Lobbying has been and continues to be a massive part of the association’s role on behalf of members. Examples this year include lobbying DIT for a reinstatement of a grant scheme to support suppliers exhibiting abroad, delaying the launch, and reallocating the burden of cost of the proposed new EPR packaging scheme, to pressing retailers on slow payments. Lobbying will continue to afford BHETA the opportunity to help members deal with specific challenges such as EPR, Export grant support, retailer payment issues and responsible knife retailing. Following our recent member


survey, just under a third are actively interested in switching sourcing back or moving to European suppliers, with 15% having recently done so. This feeds into the security of supply narrative and the over reliance on East Asia for the supply of goods. This is an area in which BHETA will support members as it leads to more UK reshoring opportunities. BHETA member engagement is at an all-time high, and while 2023 will no doubt be an extremely challenging year, we have a number of proactive initiatives that will support our members.


DECEMBER 2022 DIY WEEK 15


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36