Prepared by By Joe Derochowski, Home Industry Advisor for Circana, Silver Sponsor at HIRI's 2024 Home Improvement Insights Summit.
Join us this September 18 and 19, 2024 in Chicago! Learn more and register to attend here.
Home improvement is a lot like eating potato chips, once you start, it is tough to stop ' homeowners want to make improvements to their space. Whether it is to spice things up or making a necessary repair, a simple update or a complex fix, most consumers do one or more home improvement projects a year, and 95% make a home improvement product purchase annually.
According to retail sales data from Circana, consumers are spending less on non-food purchases. This reprioritization in spending comes as a result of increased credit card debt and increased prices for many monthly expenses. Home sales and larger home improvement projects have also slowed, with higher interest rates playing a significant role. But, there are still opportunities to engage the consumer. According to a recent consumer survey, of the people who typically hired a professional for home improvement, home repair, or lawn and garden projects, more than half plan to do more of these projects themselves.
It comes down to inspiring and enticing the consumer with less expensive and more focused home improvement solutions.
Different generations have different interests and needs that can be leveraged to get their attention, and their home improvement dollars.
Looking at share of wallet, we know that 18-24 year olds index high for technology. They may be enticed by the idea of building their own work/play environment.
The 25-34 age group is more focused on major life moments, including getting married and purchasing a first home. Help them prepare for the road head with the right tools and a roadmap of the best small projects to get started with.
The prime years for a focus on family, entertaining, and at-home living is where 35-54 year-olds are at, and these consumers are likely to have a long wish-list of projects. Curated ideas can ease some of the feelings of being overwhelmed, and help to motivate these consumers to get started. Social media is an ideal tool to engage consumers with this kind of inspiration, and one that other growing industries, like beauty, are leveraging to generate interest and excitement around new and existing products.
Consumers age 55 and older tend to allocate a larger share of wallet to home improvement throughout he home. Empty nesters may be questioning whether to upsize, downsize, or remodel. They also have added disposable income to allocate to updates to their existing home or buying and updating a second home. Addressing these questions and needs provides many opportunities to inspire this consumer.
Consumers are feeling the financial pinch, but they still care about their homes, and how their living space makes them feel. As an industry, we must innovate with this in mind, bringing inspiring products and ideas that make various kinds of home improvement spending a priority this year.
If you're ready to learn more about the current state of the home improvement market, join us from 7:00-8:00am on September 19 for our complimentary breakfast at the HIRI Summit, happening September 18-19-2024 in Chicago.
Circana is a leading advisor on the complexity of consumer behavior. Through superior technology, advanced analytics, cross-industry data, and deep expertise, we provide clarity that helps almost 7,000 of the world's leading brands and retailers take action and unlock business growth. We understand more about the complete consumer, the complete store, and the complete wallet so our clients can go beyond the data to apply insights, ignite innovation, meet consumer demand, and outpace the competition.