DIY vs Do-it-for-me in the home improvement

One of the key trends in the home improvement monitor is the expected shift from consumers doing DIY jobs, to consumers outsourcing these jobs (Do-it-for-me). One of the key assumptions supporting this expected trend is the aging of the western European society.  In principle, the older generations have more DIY skills than the younger ones, and are more willing to initiate home improvement jobs. However, there comes a point when this older generation physically cannot conduct that many DIY jobs anymore.  On the other hand, the increased cost of labour and the labour shortage has a negative effect on the growth of outsourcing home improvement jobs, although undeclared jobs market somewhat offsets this. Furthermore, our research shows that youngsters are in fact interested in learning DIY skills, another possible offset for the trend towards outsourcing home improvement jobs.  So where do we stand now?

In the European home improvement monitor, a quarterly research focussing on key home improvement trends in general and on a product level in 11 countries (based on 26,400 online interviews) we have been monitoring this trend for over 5 years now. The latest Q4 2018 report of this monitor focusses on the trend from DIY to do-it-for-me (DIFM). The research is conducted by USP Marketing Consultancy.

There is clearly a shift towards Do-it-for-me, with the share of DIFM slowly increasing to over 35% on a European level. There are clear differences per country tough. Below some key facts from the research are presented.

The full report covers much more and provides insights on a product level as well. Below you will find a link to a report impression for a better insight what the full report offers. This full report is now available for 3,000 Euro (including 1 product category of choice and covering 11 countries). The report will update you on the shift towards DIFM and various other trends. Understanding this trends is very important for the future development of the home improvement market and thus for manufacturers active in this market.

In case of any questions or if you would like to order the report, please feel free to contact me.

Best regards,

Dirk Hoogenboom
Research Consultant
USP Marketing Consultancy

T: +3110 206 6914
M: +31652098924

E: hoogenboom@usp-mc.nl
www.usp-mc.nl