The British have been warming to the idea of gardening, DIY and raising animals for food in their back gardens this year as the credit crisis makes the good life more attractive.
Whether today’s Surbiton housewives are pulling on their wellies with the ferocity of Felicity Kendal in the 1970s BBC comedy series is open to debate, but Kingfisher, the owner of B&Q, has made a promising start to sales of chicken coops and is moving into properties for pigs.
Sales of strawberry plants at the retailer rose by 80 per cent in the six months to August, while vegetable plant sales shot up by 68 per cent and seed kits by 225 per cent.
Pig arks, costing about £350, will be sold through the retailer’s website from next month.
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Ian Cheshire, chief executive of Kingfisher, said: “There has been an amazing expansion … and a real interest in people finding a way into growing their own produce.”
Concerns about the environment and the desire to save money are the main drivers behind the trend, according to Kingfisher.
Another factor, though, is that a number of celebrities have backed the concept of growing or raising your own, with Gordon Ramsay showing off turkeys in his back garden, along with pigs called Trinny and Susannah, during series of The F Word.
Kingfisher has also benefited from homeowners’ decision to stay put as the housing market slumped, and a renewed apetite to spruce up their own houses themselves rather than paying builders and decorators.
Mr Cheshire said: “We are looking to capitalise on homes as a place to live rather than a financial asset. Paint and wallpaper sales are up 15 per cent, especially designer wallpapers and funky designs.
“Previously, when people were buying to let, they bought lots of bland colours and magnolias so as not to upset anyone. Now we’ve lost the first-time buyer and people want to do up their houses.”
The company, which also operates in France, Eastern Europe and China, yesterday reported a 35 per cent rise in first-half profit to £288 million, lifted by a strong performance in the UK and Poland. The company said It had benefited from the fall of rival MFI into administration last November.
Sales of charcoal barbecues rose by 69 per cent as May and June promised good weather for the summer.
B&Q has plans to start offering an installation service for big-ticket products such as kitchens and bathrooms and is running trials of a service in Scotland at the moment.
Mr Cheshire said: “There is a gap in the market for a big trusted brand to do installations. There is a consumer demand for it. There have been times with B&Q that we have done installations that have just generated complaints because they weren’t done well. But now we want to be the Tesco for the home.”
If you think DIY is cool you must have a screw loose
B&Q declaring that DIY is “cool” is a bit like the Jobcentre announcing that dole queues are a hot new trend. Or Iceland claiming that economy packs of frozen burgers sell better in a recession because they are just so fashionable.
We are in an economic slump, but no one in their right mind chooses to sign on, eat awful food or grout the bathroom if they can afford to do otherwise.
This is not to deny that DIY as a concept has a certain atavistic appeal for some men. But fiddling with glue, screws and wall fixings is often frustrating. One enthusiast I know says that he would retain an interest in DIY if he were a millionaire, but “in a project management role” — he would pay other people to sand the floorboards while he watched. It is true that there is a strong trend for improving rather than moving, as claimed by Ian Cheshire, chief executive of Kingfisher, the owner of B&Q. It is very difficult to buy a house at the moment. Even though Countrywide, Britain’s largest estate agency, reported a 69 per cent rise in the number of inquiries and buyers registering during August, compared with the same month last year, sellers remain outraged that their homes could possibly be worth 20 per cent less than in 2007. So they are sulking and staying put.
The result is increased competition for the few properties on the market, which has already led to increased house prices — in a recession. Property prices grew by an average of 1.7 per cent in July, the strongest monthly growth for five years, according to the Land Registry. Add the fact that the average cost of moving home (stamp duty, legal fees, removal costs) has tripled in ten years to nearly £9,500, according to propertyfinder.com, throw in the raised probability of unemployment, oh, and the near impossibility of getting a mortgage without substantial equity, and it is a miracle anyone moves at all.
So miserable mothers dream of procuring the services of interior designers while placating their bored offspring in the cafés of soulless out-of-town retail parks on Sundays, as their husbands stock up on Polyfilla, Dulux tester pots and small bits of wood “that might come in handy”. This is not cool. Directing tradesmen to do the work for you while reclining on the sofa with a beer — that is cool.
