The home trend sweeping Britain of improving rather than moving provides a key opportunity for merchants, as statistics show homeowners are happy to spend over £5,500 on refurbishment projects to make their home look nicer*.
When it comes to stocking timber products, such as stairparts, merchants should keep an eye on key design trends in the residential and commercial markets in order to place themselves in a prime position to advise installers on what to purchase and when.
White oak is favoured in both residential and commercial settings for its light, airy feel and streamlined look. It’s a clean modern timber and is a good match for contemporary furnishing and living, making it ideal for flooring and stairparts.
Glass is also starting to replace timber infill for stairparts, as glass helps to create the illusion of space creating a lighter, brighter entrance to a property.
Furthermore, pre-finished stairparts are an ideal product for merchants to stock as a quick ‘sell in-sell out’ product. The beauty of pre-finished stairparts means there is no disruption to work going on upstairs or downstairs while installers wait for the finish to dry, to ensure dust and contaminates do not affect the finish. This can save a considerable amount of time, as sanding, painting or varnishing the balustrades can take longer to do than the installation itself, making stairparts a quick and easy win for installers.
*Wooden Blinds Direct.
Paul Lerigo is marketing director at Richard Burbidge.
