INVC NEWS
Houzz Inc, the world’s leading platform for home remodeling and design, today released the 2018 Houzz India State of the Industry. The report provides an overview of 2017 performance and an outlook on 2018 for residential renovation and design businesses based on data reported by nearly 200 professionals in the Houzz India community. The study revealed that 2017 was a strong year for the majority of firms across the industry, with nearly half having met or exceeded gross revenue expectations for the year (47 percent).
Three in five businesses also reported an increase in gross revenue in 2017 relative to 2016 (61 percent), with nearly half of those reporting that revenues increased by more than 10 percent (48 percent). Design-build firms were most likely to have seen revenue gains relative to 2016 (72 percent), followed by interior designers and architects (61 and 56 percent, respectively).
Increases in revenue were not without challenges. Nearly two in five businesses reported difficulty finding customers and increased competition (38 and 24 percent, respectively). While managing customer concern over cost continues to be a challenge (37 percent), the report shows a six percent point decrease from the previous year (43 percent). Managing customer concerns over cost was felt most significantly by design build firms and interior designers (48 and 42 percent, respectively), while architects were most concerned with finding prospective customers (42 percent).
“Renovation business revenues have surpassed expectations for another consecutive year,” said Nino Sitchinava, principal economist at Houzz. “The overall outlook for 2018 remains optimistic as well, despite increased competition and challenges finding prospective customers.”
Looking Forward to 2018
Considering a 13 percentage point decrease in renovation professionals who anticipate a rise in the cost of doing business in 2018 (54 versus 67 percent in 2017), the majority of businesses are optimistic about continued gross revenue growth (89 percent). Design build firms and interior designers are most bullish in their expectations for increased gross revenue in 2018 (97 percent and 93 percent, respectively), followed by architects (86 percent).To support that growth, firms plan to invest in more marketing and bring in larger budget projects (each 58 percent). Other common strategies include improving customer experience (54 percent), offering new products and services (42 percent) and improving employee productivity (37 percent). Company headcounts are expected to rise in 2018 for more than half of design build firms, interior designers and architects (68, 60 and 52 percent, respectively).
There are more than 1.5 million active home renovation and design professionals on Houzz, including architects, interior designers, home builders & construction companies and design and build firms.
The Houzz India State of the Industry Study was conducted among home renovation firms in the Houzz India community that offer services related primarily to residential renovation and/or design. The study was fielded in December 2017 and January 2018. N=196.