The only way is up
Is the current state of the market worse than the 2008 crash? Does the industry really care about sustainability? Where are the opportunities for growth in the retail and commercial sectors?
These questions, and more, formed part of an industry round table, hosted last week by Deceuninck at its impressive Calne facility.
The event was well attended and included fabricators, installers, members of the Deceuninck senior management team, plus representatives from the GGF and machinery, software and foiling specialists.
The short answer to the first of those questions, following feedback from roundtable attendees, is ‘yes’, the challenges currently facing many businesses are worse than the financial crash of the late noughties.
Businesses up and down the supply chain are struggling in what is a prolonged period of flat, inconsistent or declining sales and as a result, many are resorting to competing heavily on price – which as everyone knows, is not a tactic for sustainable, long-term growth.
On the topic of sustainability, feedback from attendees was mixed.
But for some retail companies, ‘green’ windows and doors are not necessarily a priority for homeowner customers. They are merely a ‘nice to have’. This would appear to not always be the case – others argued that sustainability was a big selling point – but it is evidently dependent on what part of the country you are selling in, and customer demographic.
More surprisingly, sustainability – currently – seems to be even less of a priority in commercial projects, certainly way behind price (again), lead times, regulatory compliance and product quality.
The argument for sustainability, however, remains compelling. Deceuninck, like other PVC-U and aluminium system houses – plus glass manufacturers – has invested millions in closed loop recycling initiatives and in developing low carbon products, and the benefits are tangible. That includes significantly greener buildings, shorter and more robust supply chains and products that appeal to an increasing number of environmentally aware consumers.
So where are the opportunities? For the retail market, feedback indicated that colours, foils, flush heritage style products, aluminium and energy efficiency are all areas still driving growth. As long as installers are proactive in lead gen and marketing, and don’t expect sales to just land in their lap…you can read more about this topic, and why the industry should ‘adapt or decline’ in our lead story this week from Andrew Scott of Purplex Marketing.
In the commercial sector, delays at Gateway 2 and 3 are currently the cause of much frustration – but once these are cleared, Deceuninck at least is very optimistic for the future.
The overall message from this roundtable? Times are tough, but from this point, the only way is (hopefully) up…