Do you track the home improvement industry? If you do, but didn’t make it to the Home Improvement Research Institute’s HIRI Summit last month, you can still benefit from the top takeaways shared by thought leaders presenting there.
The nonprofit trade organization is made up of global building products manufacturers, large chain retailers and allied entities in the supply chain and media. Here are five of the top trends they discussed, along with insights on what they might mean for you.
1. Luxury projects are slowing
“Discretionary luxury remodeling is slowing, with the five product categories facing most severe headwinds: High end cabinets, cladding, flooring, roofing and dimensional lumber,” observed Todd Tomalak with John Burns Real Estate Consulting.
This can provide opportunities for emerging quality value brands in the kitchen and bath remodeling spheres, where clients have more access to consumer-facing information. For example, features like soft close doors and drawers, sizing customization, and organizing accessories, once limited to semi-custom and custom cabinetry, are becoming more widely available in more affordable brands.