Which sectors of the industry have seen growth this year?
As we have seen, pool spa and sauna business behaves differently under different conditions and influences so we look at them individually to see how they have performed during the year.
How has the pool sector behaved this year?
51% of respondents have seen growth in pool business over the year. For 45% of respondents things have remained broadly the same leaving only 4% of businesses doing less pool business than before.
A healthy 30% of that pool business was mostly building new pools with the other 70% doing both new builds and refurbishment.
How has the spa and hot tub sector performed this year?
The hot dry summer of 2020 combined with the travel restrictions brought about by Covid and the unspent cash from furloughed workers and un-taken overseas holidays brought spa and hot tub sales to their absolute peak.
It was never likely that these conditions would repeat themselves and, indeed, they haven’t. Spa sales have been in decline ever since.
Almost 66% of respondents saw falling sales in spas this year.
What is causing that? There is a theory that 2020 sales were so high that anyone who wants a spa now has one. Of course the other factor is the energy cost with hot tubs being seen as expensive to run.
How has the sauna sector performed this year?
Over 40% of respondents have seen growth in sales of sauna and steam products over the last year.
Sauna sales were barely influenced by the pandemic and neither are saunas seen to be expensive to run. Sauna offers both physical and mental benefits and estate agents say that a sauna is almost always seen as an asset to a property whereas a pool or a spa can sometimes actually detract from a property value.
These three things appear to be in harmony with what the public are looking for today and it seems safe to say that growth in sauna sales will continue.
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