Difficulties in the wider housing markets mean increasing numbers of people are turning their hands towards DIY, an industry expert suggests.
Geoff Cooper, chief executive of Travis Perkins – the parent company of DIY retailer Wickes – tells the Financial Times that Britons are looking to attempt more DIY projects themselves, rather than hire professional tradespeople.
Consequently, this has lead to DIY stores seeing a rise in sales, as Mr Cooper claims that Wickes’ sales for the current Easter period would be ahead of those recorded last year.
He states: “There’s huge numbers of people who either can’t move or don’t want to move and those are the people that are doing work in their own home.”
The Travis Perkins head also claims consumers are becoming evermore ambitious with regards to DIY projects, as they look to do jobs such as fitting decking and installing new bathrooms.
Meanwhile, research from BDO Stoy Hayward recently revealed sales at homeware stores rose 5.7 per cent over the course of March, an increase partially driven by people becoming more keen on doing DIY.