DIY drives hardware boom
Home owners ditching the tradies and donning the building aprons are behind a Diyfuelled hardware and homeware sales boom, possibly inspired by TV.
New figures from market research firm Marketview show the hardware and homeware sector in Palmerston North was now worth nearly $70 million a year.
The sector had the fastest growing retail spend in the 12 months to October, rising 12 per cent to more than $67 million during that period.
Director of Palmerston North homeware store Taylor Road, John Heng, said growth was more down to an overall improvement in the economy.
Most of the company’s business was from repeat customers, with the occasional new homeowner.
Popular TV shows like House Rules and The Block were possibly the biggest driver behind hardware/homeware spending, he said.
Manawatu ITM Building Centre manager Darren Richardson said the hardware and building supplies industry had boomed over the past year.
The hardware and homeware sector far out-paced the city’s overall retail growth of 1.1 per cent and was growing four times faster than the same period in 2014, after a 1 per cent slip last year.
‘‘We’ve picked up heaps [in the past year]... everything’s selling,’’ Richardson said.
‘‘You used to be able to pick up the phone and order for tomorrow. ‘‘[Now] it’s at least 10 working days that you’ve got to order ahead.’’
Palmerston North City Council economic advisor Peter Crawford said the city’s busy housing market had probably contributed to the sector’s large up-swing in sales.
There was a 42 per cent increase in residential building consents in the 12 months before September, with 248 issued by the council.
The council also issued 404 consents for residential alterations or additions to existing buildings in the same period, 6 per cent higher than the previous year.
Crawford said it was a good indication that people would be looking for tools and materials to build with and homeware to furnish the place after the work was done.
But the consent figures didn’t tell the whole story.
‘‘There are a lot of smaller projects that don’t require consents that still need a trip or two down the hardware store,’’ he said.
Real Estate New Zealand Manawatu spokesman Andy Stewart said on top of new home-owners looking for building materials or furnishings, the state of the region’s housing market could be encouraging more DIY.
Many sellers will put in a little DIY, or hire a builder, to make repairs and catch problems before they show up on a housing report, he said.
‘‘There’s also a lot [more] people deciding to stay in their current homes and make improvements.’’
Stewart said people were feeling more cautious about trading in their current home for an upgrade.
A low level of houses on the market means getting a new home after selling up was less certain than in the past.
If no more houses came on to the market, all the available properties in the region would go in 13 weeks.