Financial advantage

Increasing turbulence among many of the industry’s biggest brands, particularly large-scale nationwide installation firms, has created a lucrative opportunity for savvy installers to win new business, Improveasy has said.

According to the firm. a combination of profit warnings, falling share prices and hefty fines have left some of the big players incredibly vulnerable, and open to greater competition from smaller, more locally-based installers.

Improveasy managing director Austin Barcley said it’s now imperative that installers offer consumer finance packages to effectively impact the market share of national brands during this time of turmoil. 

“There’s arguably never been a better time for smart, pro-active installers to gain an advantage over their national competition – but to do so, finance will be key,” he said.

“Consumers are often keen to ‘shop local’ when it comes to home improvement installers, but the finance packages offered by the established national brands make it more affordable and far more convenient for consumers to use them instead. But as some of the bigger brands in the industry begin to struggle, local installers can step in by offering finance to their customers and winning new, more profitable business.

“When you consider recent research by Hitachi found that retailers risk losing 44% of customers if they don’t offer finance, it’s a massive opportunity that smaller installers, in particular, should be exploring.”  

The company said that most new clients can be up and running in 14 days, taking advantage of a range of APRs, including 0%, along with training and support.