There's No Glazing Industry Middle Ground Left

Each time a manufacturer brings out a new product or range of products, it’s almost always aimed at the higher end of the market. Residence 9 have brought out R2, R7 and R8 ranges, all aimed at the higher end of the market. Liniar launched their Alumina aluminium bi-folding door which looks impressive, again, aimed at the higher end of the market. AluK have just launched their new 77 window system. Prefix launched their Opus range of hybrid timber and aluminium windows, doors and glazed extension roofs.

All of the above, and many more, are products aimed at the higher end of the home improvement market. In fact I am yet to see a new product launched that has been aimed at the budget part of the market in at least three to five years.

It’s a clear shift from the industry towards the part of the market where contract values are higher, and profit margins are higher too.

It has led me to think that there is very little middle ground left in the industry. Perhaps not even at all.

A tale of two halves

The industry has become split down the middle for two very important reasons.

First, much of the industry has now decided to move away from high volume/low margin business models. It requires a lot of work for very little return and margin on each item. At this moment in time, it doesn’t make good financial sense. Many suppliers and manufacturers now understand that home owner demands and tastes have changed, and want higher quality window and door options, in a variety of materials.

This has led to an almost endless run of new product launches in UK glazing aimed at the higher end, higher contract value part of the residential market.

The second reason is much more straight forward. The middle-of-the-road type product, the standard shiny white framed products with safe looks and pedestrian hardware options simply don’t excite home owners or installers any more. Traditional PVCu has become unfashionable, dated, inefficient and uninspiring. This is the middle ground between low end budget products and the ever expanding high end part of the market, and quite simply it’s boring.

If a home owner is going to spend £10k+ on a house full of windows and doors, they want to be excited and engaged with what they’re potentially buying. The middle ground isn’t going to be the thing that inspires them.

A future of two opposites

I don’t see a middle ground coming back any time soon. Even if external economic factors try to change the trading landscape we’re in.

Home owners are now used to having a wide menu of choice, spanning all sorts of materials, aesthetic options, colours, energy efficiency and more. This is the new standard, and home owners won’t expect anything less.

But we have to think practically. Not every single home owner will have the budget for high end aluminium bi-folding doors, architectural triple glazing or timber alternative PVCu windows and doors. Therefore there will always remain a market for home owners who just want a “value” solution to suit a smaller budget, or to provide a cheap solution to help sell a home. Companies who still work on a “stack em high, sell em cheap” business model will operate in this market. In the most part.

The middle ground has gone now. Plain white windows and a simple white door won’t do the trick in 2016. Most home owners want a product they can get excited about, and the middle ground isn’t the place where those products are going to be found. We’re now an industry of two distinct opposites.

What we may find is that during economic cycles, businesses positioned at the higher end of the market may be able to ride out recessions and down turns more smoothly, so long as they have protected their profit margins well enough. The “value” positioned companies may not have that luxury.