Capitalise on opportunities

As the government unveiled its latest lockdown roadmap, the signs point to a home improvement boom. Mark Austin, sales director (Aluminium) at Epwin Window Systems, explains why Stellar can help you make the most of the market opportunities.

As we emerge from lockdown once more, there is clear evidence that the market is ready to fly. Many homeowners are in the fortunate position of having been able to save healthy sums of money over the past year or so and, what’s more, they’re keen to spend it. With overseas holidays still not completely certain, home improvements remain high on consumer’s agendas.

Our challenge as an industry is to capitalise on this immediate opportunity and give consumers the products they’re looking for: products that look and feel distinctively different to signal our move into our new normal; products that make a powerful argument for being the best way to spend their savings.

To my mind, no product fits the bill better than Stellar, the award-winning aluminium window and door system from Epwin Window Systems.

We developed Stellar in response to the growing retail aluminium market. We saw the opportunity to design a ground-breaking aluminium system from scratch that didn’t have any of the baggage of other commercially adapted systems.

As a result, everywhere you look, Stellar says new, different and better than what’s gone before.

It has some of the slimmest sightlines on the market and a glazed area that’s up to 12% larger. It is the only system on the market to have a genuinely fully flush option thanks to the innovative reverse butt joint. As a result, Stellar has the uncluttered, minimalist aesthetics that today’s homeowners are looking for.

Brent Walker, owner of Walkers Windows in Huddersfield, said: “I call Stellar a ‘showroom product’. When customers see it on display, they are immediately drawn to it as it has real consumer appeal. It is visually different from other aluminium windows on the market and its contemporary, high-end aesthetics make it a very easy sell.”

We wanted to develop an aluminium system that was as easy to install as PVCU. It’s a particular benefit at the moment because installers everywhere will be looking to maximise productivity to put their business in the strongest possible position. It has also made Stellar more accessible and affordable for the mass market.

David Green, managing director of BDC Aluminium, said: “My background is in retail sales so I understand first-hand the advantages of products that are quick and easy to fit. Stellar is 30%-40% quicker to install than anything else I’ve seen in aluminium and it makes an astonishing difference to installers.”

There are several ways that Stellar is different to install.

It’s internally glazed, so no scaffolding is needed. The flat-backed frames mean positioning is easy and there are flat rebates so fitting glazing packers is simple. Then there are the pre-gasketed knock-in beads, which means wedge gaskets aren’t needed.

Roy Bell of R Bell Construction said: “On other aluminium windows and doors, fitting the gasket and seal can be both cumbersome and fiddly to get an effective, tight seal. But with Stellar the knock-in pre-gasketed beads make the job quick, easy and accurate. It eliminates gaskets getting overstretched too, which can often happen on other products. After fitting Stellar, it’s fair to say I won’t be fitting anything else.”

There has been a growing market for retail aluminium and its sleek aesthetics for some time. I think the end of lockdown is going to drive this market even faster. And with Stellar in your portfolio, you are ideally equipped to capitalise on the opportunities and grow your business.