If you were to scan the headlines right now, you’d be forgiven for thinking the glazing industry should be battening down the hatches.
Oil prices are rising again, PVC-U suppliers are introducing surcharges of 7–10%, logistics costs are creeping upward, and April has arrived with its usual bundle of cost pressures – from minimum wage increases to higher energy bills and a consumer confidence wobble that feels increasingly familiar.
And yet, when I speak to businesses across the sector, the mood is far from uniform doom and gloom. Yes, there are challenges – real ones – but there’s also a surprising thread of resilience running through the conversations. Some companies are still performing strongly, still busy, and still finding ways to win work.
That sense of “growth against the odds” is backed up by the latest data from Business Pilot, analysed by Neil Cooper-Smith. March’s figures paint a picture of a market that isn’t booming, but certainly isn’t collapsing either. Conversion rates ticked up again to 39.3%, continuing a steady upward trend. Lead volumes recovered by around 5.5% month-on-month after February’s dip, while sales increased by 7%, meaning installers are extracting more value from each enquiry.
Of course, the wider economic picture remains complicated. Inflation has held at 3%, but the ongoing conflict in Iran and the resulting surge in oil prices threaten to push costs higher again. Fuel prices affect everything from materials to transport, and consumer confidence has slipped further into negative territory as households brace for rising living costs.
But how’s this for some food for thought.
With the last jet fuel tanker from the middle east scheduled to dock in the UK as I write this, news headlines are currently full of stories about cancelled holiday flights and rising travel costs. And that sparked a memory. Rewind to lockdown – the last time the UK population was effectively grounded.
What happened? A staggering £110.3 billion was spent on home improvements.
Now I’m not seriously suggesting that we’ll see a repeat of that scenario, but…maybe the prospect of paying over the odds for that family holiday abroad or the thought of being stranded at an airport as the airliners run dry, might just be enough to convert a few more quotes into sales…
Growth, grit… and grounded holidaymakers?
If you were to scan the headlines right now, you’d be forgiven for thinking the glazing industry should be battening down the hatches.
Oil prices are rising again, PVC-U suppliers are introducing surcharges of 7–10%, logistics costs are creeping upward, and April has arrived with its usual bundle of cost pressures – from minimum wage increases to higher energy bills and a consumer confidence wobble that feels increasingly familiar.
And yet, when I speak to businesses across the sector, the mood is far from uniform doom and gloom. Yes, there are challenges – real ones – but there’s also a surprising thread of resilience running through the conversations. Some companies are still performing strongly, still busy, and still finding ways to win work.
That sense of “growth against the odds” is backed up by the latest data from Business Pilot, analysed by Neil Cooper-Smith. March’s figures paint a picture of a market that isn’t booming, but certainly isn’t collapsing either. Conversion rates ticked up again to 39.3%, continuing a steady upward trend. Lead volumes recovered by around 5.5% month-on-month after February’s dip, while sales increased by 7%, meaning installers are extracting more value from each enquiry.
Of course, the wider economic picture remains complicated. Inflation has held at 3%, but the ongoing conflict in Iran and the resulting surge in oil prices threaten to push costs higher again. Fuel prices affect everything from materials to transport, and consumer confidence has slipped further into negative territory as households brace for rising living costs.
But how’s this for some food for thought.
With the last jet fuel tanker from the middle east scheduled to dock in the UK as I write this, news headlines are currently full of stories about cancelled holiday flights and rising travel costs. And that sparked a memory. Rewind to lockdown – the last time the UK population was effectively grounded.
What happened? A staggering £110.3 billion was spent on home improvements.
Now I’m not seriously suggesting that we’ll see a repeat of that scenario, but…maybe the prospect of paying over the odds for that family holiday abroad or the thought of being stranded at an airport as the airliners run dry, might just be enough to convert a few more quotes into sales…
Luke Wood
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