Total builders merchants value sales were up 96% in Q2 2021 compared to Q2 2020, with no difference in trading days. Tools had the highest year-on-year increases (+151.4%), with kitchens and bathrooms also reporting strong growth (+141.3%). Four categories had their best-ever quarterly sales, led by timber and joinery products (+134.6%).
Q2 2021 was also up on Q2 2019 (+20.3%) – a more normal pre-Covid year – with no difference in trading days. Landscaping did best over the period (+48.3%), closely followed by timber and joinery products (+41.3%).
Quarter-on-quarter, total sales were 24.1% higher in Q2 than in Q1, with two fewer trading days. Landscaping (+67.8%) and timber and joinery products (+29.3%) continue to lead the field.
The Q2 BMBI index was 149.7, with landscaping (237.5) and timber and joinery products (183.0) the strongest performers.
“As sales through UK builders’ merchants continue to grow strongly across all timber products, the sector is challenged to supply the increased demand,” said Simon Woods, European sales, marketing and logistics director, West Fraser and BMBI’s expert for wood-based panels. “With Covid restrictions being lifted and a worsening picture on the haulage front, the second half of 2021 could be more challenging than the first.
“As recently reported, the UK has a 60,000 HGV driver shortage and this position is mirrored in mainland Europe too. With almost 50% of UK drivers currently over 50 years old, a backlog of 28,000 HGV tests and an estimated 12,000 EU drivers who have returned home due to Covid/tax changes – our industry is facing the very real probability of goods not being delivered. The building products industry needs to review its processes to understand how we can move product around the country more efficiently – fewer drops (time stealers), maximised pack sizes (load utilisation) etc. We should consider a “think tank” exercise, with all interested parties represented.
“Most timber products are in high demand and will be for the foreseeable future. One of the reasons for this increasing demand is the sustainability of wood and its positive contribution to reducing the climate crisis. Wood from managed forestry actually stores carbon as opposed to emitting it: as trees grow, they absorb CO2 from the atmosphere. As a rule of thumb, a cubic metre of wood holds the equivalent of around a tonne of absorbed CO2 (depending on the species of tree). As we use these trees and replant more, the removal of CO2 continues, making timber products carbon neutral.
“There is a strong move from many architects to dramatically increase their use of wood and return it to be the primary building material in construction. Not only does wood remove more CO2 from the atmosphere than it adds through manufacture, but by replacing carbon-intensive materials such as concrete or steel it doubles its contribution to lowering CO2. As a sector, builders’ merchants are also tasked with reducing their carbon footprint. Driving the use of wood-based products is a way to play a large part in the movement towards sustainable building and reduce the impact of the construction process on our increasingly fragile climate.”
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The Builders Merchant Building Index (BMBI)
The BMBI is a brand of the BMF. The BMBI report, which is produced and managed by MRA Research, uses GfK’s Builders Merchant Point of Sale Tracking Data which analyses sales out data from over 80% of generalist builders’ merchants’ sales across Great Britain. The full report is on www.bmbi.co.uk.
