The last 3 years were an actual rollercoaster ride for the entire industry. Warehouses were full of material without any movement to empty warehouses due to global supply chain issues. It was a ‘walk on a tight rope’ for the whole industry.
Value-wise, 2020 took the most hit due to the Chinese virus/lockdown. All construction practices came to a halt all of a sudden. The year 2020 was a bit of relief, but only due to rollover orders of 2020. We have not seen major new orders or launches in 2021. The rally of 2021 was strong only for the first two quarters. The last two quarters were just average.
Incentives from the government pushed developers to launch new projects and bring normalcy in order to get them started. The year 2022 has started on a good note. I am sure this rally will continue for the entire year. The global supply chain is still a challenge, and normalcy is not in the near future.
In all this difficult time, I must appreciate the efforts taken by organisations and knowledge-sharing platforms like WFM to keep the industry engaged in knowledge enrichment sessions. This really helped many people and decision makers to understand the different perspectives of windows, doors & façades. In the daily busy schedule, this was really not possible.
Due to this break, many industry experts brought in new concepts and enhanced their portfolios. We saw a sharp increase in demand for quality hardware. The window, door & façade industry is known as an unorganised sector, but the pandemic break gave an opportunity to make it a more organised and lean operation. This, in turn, helped hardware suppliers to present their products in a different format.
The demand for larger homes, along with bigger windows that invite light and air inside, has increased. According to the ANAROCK report, the demand for larger homes increased by 79%. A bigger home means more windows per flat.
The demand for commercial spaces, even though the work from home (WFH) declined initially, picked up in 2021 due to normalcy.
There is renewed demand for aesthetically more pleasing hardware. This prompted established brands to launch some new handle designs. One of the most in-demand handles is a handle without a base.
The global supply chain forces people to find local suppliers for on-time delivery. Creating a local ecosystem for hardware is a good initiative for a local supplier. Focused efforts are needed to create basic infrastructure with investment in R&D, which is lacking at present.
I am confident that sustained demand for better-performing hardware will continue to improve over a period of time.
Related Post
Top Story
