Mixed outlook for retail sector

Is the industry experiencing a downturn? It depends on who you talk to. I’ve had plenty of conversations over the last few months to indicate that demand in the retail sector has slowed post-pandemic. That’s backed up by data from the most recent Business Pilot barometer, which revealed a 46% drop in sales from March to May.

However, it would appear that some companies are still going strong. I spoke to the directors of Patios South West last week, a Deceuninck fabricator based in Newton Abbot, and they had just experienced a record month – and were on target to beat that for July.

Andrew Dobbin and Michael Stevens have been enjoying a huge amount of success with Deceuninck’s Slider24 patio door and were very optimistic for the remainder of the year.

And according to Deceuninck’s MD, Rob McGlennon, they are not the only Deceuninck customer who are still reporting strong sales…

If you’re a fabricator or installer in a similar position, then please feel free to email me at luke@glasstimes.co.uk with your feedback.

That positive outlook is dampened slightly by a warning from Cornwall Group in this week’s newsletter that ‘a perfect storm’ of energy costs and market conditions will put severe pressure on glass companies in the second half of this year and into 2023, an issue that could be exacerbated by glass manufacturers placing customers on allocation in the coming months.

The Group’s chair, Mark Mitchell, has predicted price increases of 25-30% this summer and into autumn, pointing to a ‘horrid recipe’ of rising interest rates, inflation and product shortages.

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