DIY market hit hard by real estate crisis and economic uncertainty

With property sales down, regulatory uncertainty, and a challenging environment, the DIY market suffered last year, seeing its turnover drop by 4,3% following the exceptional performance generated by Covid.

In 2024, sales by DIY superstores - Leroy Merlin, Castorama, Bricomarché, Mr Bricolage, etc. - will reach 22,1 billion euros, a decline of one billion in value compared to 2023, the FMB (Federation of DIY Stores) and Inoha (industrialists in the sector) indicated Thursday during a press briefing.

Boosted by the Covid-19 epidemic, which had given renewed importance to home and garden improvement, the DIY market generated €23,4 billion in both 2021 and 2022. In 2019, before the pandemic, its turnover stood at €20 billion.

"The number one explanatory factor" for the decline in activity last year is the decline in sales of existing homes, "because in a home that has changed hands, work will be done, there is a period of 1 to 3 years during which we will have projects" for renovation or development, summarizes Juliette Lauzac, research officer for the FMB and Inoha.

According to her, there is also "a wait-and-see attitude among consumers, a lack of visibility due to the anxiety-provoking nature of the geopolitical context, which reduces the desire to plan ahead", without forgetting "regulatory uncertainty" on rental property purchases in particular, with "the energy performance rating of buildings and the exclusion of thermal sieves".

Ms. Lauzac points out that beyond DIY, other sectors of home equipment, such as furniture and large household appliances, are also in the red.

Regarding 2025, even if the start of the year is "on the same dynamic" as in 2024, "we still hope for better figures for 2025 and we have positive signals, such as transactions in the old market which are starting to rise again, and also the fact that attachment to the home remains strong", summarizes Juliette Lauzac.

Alongside the decline in in-store sales, Google searches for home improvement and DIY – for example, keywords such as "lawnmower", "bathroom furniture", "scaffolding rental" and "pellet stove" – also fell last year, by 7,8%, with price also being "the leading search trend", notes Eric Flusin, data manager for Inoha.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.