"Hold your nerve" after re-opening
Website Editor • June 1, 2020
Suppliers and retailers comment on
post-lockdown prospects
Flooring is ready to roll and the industry expects Q3 to be relatively buoyant as a backlog of demand drives high levels of activity. But Q4 and beyond are less certain!
A strong start to the year and a high level of enquiries immediately before lockdown (and even during the closure) has prompted manufacturers and retailers to be cautiously optimistic about the immediate future.
“We have a backlog of orders to work through and we’re very keen to get started,” said Gary Tyler, of retailer Bradfords of Evesham. “We have spent the last two weeks gearing up for a return to work and we have just been waiting for the green light.”
“We took a lot of orders in just before the lockdown and the enquiries have continued,” says Steve Cox of Heritage Flooring in Leigh-on-Sea. “There is business out there and I’m looking forward to getting back into it.”
A strong start to the year and a high level of enquiries immediately before lockdown (and even during the closure) has prompted manufacturers and retailers to be cautiously optimistic about the immediate future.
“We have a backlog of orders to work through and we’re very keen to get started,” said Gary Tyler, of retailer Bradfords of Evesham. “We have spent the last two weeks gearing up for a return to work and we have just been waiting for the green light.”
“We took a lot of orders in just before the lockdown and the enquiries have continued,” says Steve Cox of Heritage Flooring in Leigh-on-Sea. “There is business out there and I’m looking forward to getting back into it.”
"Our intake of sample requests has been strong so there is definitely some pent-up demand in the market. We know some consumers are desperate to get their carpets down."
Manufacturer Chris Adam, MD of Adam Carpets agrees: “We saw good growth in interest before the lockdown and our intake of sample requests has been strong so there is definitely some pent-up demand in the market. We know some consumers are desperate to get their carpets down.
“There’s no way of knowing how strong this demand will be or how long it will last but my glass is half full at the moment. For the people who have some funds, there are limited options for spending and the home will be a focus for their investment,” says Chris.
The sense that consumers will be focussed on their homes in 2020 comes through strongly across the trade. “It’s difficult to work out what the new normal will look like but there is definitely demand out there. People have been decorating their houses and have had to wait to get to the floor so we should see a good re-start for retailers,” says Martin West of Balta Carpets.
Retailer Steve Cox agrees: “During the lockdown people have had the chance to re-discover their homes and have taken a fresh look at their décor. Now it’s time for flooring. Provided we’re sensible and tread carefully in people’s home when fitting, I think we can resume our trade successfully.”
Matt Collins of Design Flooring in Bristol, adds: “We’ve also had time to stand back and make some improvements to our store and make our operation more efficient so that we can provide a really effective and safe service. Now I’m excited to get back to work and it’s full steam ahead.”
From the discussions The Stocklists has had over the last two weeks, no one is under any illusions that it will be easy. We’ll be doing a survey next month but anecdotal evidence suggests that many retailers expect annual turnover to be up to a third down on last year’s sales figures by Christmas. Improvements in the health situation may soon be tempered by fears of recession.
“There’s no way of knowing how strong this demand will be or how long it will last but my glass is half full at the moment. For the people who have some funds, there are limited options for spending and the home will be a focus for their investment,” says Chris.
The sense that consumers will be focussed on their homes in 2020 comes through strongly across the trade. “It’s difficult to work out what the new normal will look like but there is definitely demand out there. People have been decorating their houses and have had to wait to get to the floor so we should see a good re-start for retailers,” says Martin West of Balta Carpets.
Retailer Steve Cox agrees: “During the lockdown people have had the chance to re-discover their homes and have taken a fresh look at their décor. Now it’s time for flooring. Provided we’re sensible and tread carefully in people’s home when fitting, I think we can resume our trade successfully.”
Matt Collins of Design Flooring in Bristol, adds: “We’ve also had time to stand back and make some improvements to our store and make our operation more efficient so that we can provide a really effective and safe service. Now I’m excited to get back to work and it’s full steam ahead.”
From the discussions The Stocklists has had over the last two weeks, no one is under any illusions that it will be easy. We’ll be doing a survey next month but anecdotal evidence suggests that many retailers expect annual turnover to be up to a third down on last year’s sales figures by Christmas. Improvements in the health situation may soon be tempered by fears of recession.
"There are a lot of people who will still want to buy carpet and we need to be prepared to make good sales. Hold your nerve! The importance of selling up has never been greater to get the best value out of every sales opportunity”
Mike Reed of buying group SMG asks retailers to “hold their nerve.”
“There may be a lot of people who are still holding back because of this crisis, but the ones that do start shopping again need to be encouraged to buy a better product – so make sure people pay a good price.”
“Those consumers who still do have disposable income may avoid big ticket items like cars and kitchens until life is more certain, and their holiday funds may go unspent,” he said. “The home has been our safe haven in this crisis and all the signs are that consumers will invest in it – now that all the fences and sheds have been painted and once garden centres run out of meagre stocks, home furnishing will be to the fore!”
“There are a lot of people who will still want to buy carpet and we need to be prepared to make good sales. Hold your nerve! The importance of selling up has never been greater to get the best value out of every sales opportunity,” he said.
“Stock will be king to support orders in the short term,” adds Balta’s Martin West. “Supply chains are likely to be disrupted for some time so the industry is going to have to work around the stock available to meet demand and generate the cashflow that will be badly needed in many businesses.”
“There’s no naivety the the new normal is going to be anything other than tough,” says The Stocklists editor David Spragg. “But the flooring industry is more resilient than many. Retailers are less exposed to the online shift than many sectors and social distancing is relatively easy with a little care and attention to detail.
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