Jubilee celebrations offer a good excuse for putting off those DIY jobs

With Jubilee fever taking over the country, a staggering 96% of people will be putting off their usual Bank Holiday DIY jobs to concentrate on celebrating the Queen's 60 years reign with friends and family.

A recent survey by Hitachi Capital Consumer Finance, also revealed that for those who suffer a DIY disaster in the home over Jubilee weekend, nearly half (47%) would attempt a repair themselves, whilst men would head to the pub to toast the Queen and leave the DIY on hold.

This growth in a literal do-it-yourself attitude has also seen increasing numbers of people turning to the Internet video resources for guidance (26%). In a struggling economic climate, cash is often tight and people want to save money where they can, but a third also recognise that the risk of a DIY blunder can be too great and it makes financial sense to bring in the experts (31%).

It seems the gender stereotype holds true, with a fifth of women still more reliant on their parents for help in a DIY disaster. In comparison, manly pride wins through with only one in ten men admitting they would call their parents for help in the case of a fallen through ceiling or a leaking water pipe!

Bank holidays are often peak DIY trading periods and with the Queen’s Jubilee providing an additional bank holiday on Tuesday 5th June, retailers are hoping to see an increase in sales. However, Hitachi’s survey also revealed that although a fifth (20%) of people would love to improve the house and/or garden with a makeover, home improvements are on hold as people can’t afford to invest in DIY at the moment.

A Person’s Home Is His Castle…

The top 5 home improvements that people would make if money was no object include:

1.Give the kitchen a makeover
2.Landscape the garden
3.New decking in the garden
4.Laying a new patio
5.Decorating the lounge

Gerald Grimes, managing director at Hitachi Capital, commented: “It seems as if many people will be relaxing over the Jubilee weekend and leaving the DIY for a rainy day. There were also consumers who responded that they would like to make home improvements but because of the economic squeeze, aren’t currently able to. However, with the many finance options now available, they may be able to turn their home improvement pipedreams into reality and purchase that new kitchen after all.”

Source : The Retail Bulletin
www.retailbulletin.com