Apollo Blinds says it is starting to see an increase in sales as a result of a rise in the number of homeowners who are staying put and splashing the cash on their homes rather than on selling their properties.

Apollo Blinds’ network of franchisees across the UK and Ireland are attributing part of their sales growth on the increasing numbers of customers they are coming across who are opting to improve their house instead of trying to sell it.

They say they are measuring up record numbers of loft and garage conversions, new extensions and conservatories at a time when the introduction of Home Improvement Packs (HIPs) and persistent fears of a house prices correction are some of the factors which have contributed to a slowing of the housing market. Apollo Blinds regional manager for Scotland and Ireland, Ian Thornton, believes the so-called ‘stay put homeowners’ are fuelling the increase in sales because they are prepared to spend hundreds of pounds making the most of what they have got rather than risk losing thousands of pounds by moving.

“There seems to be a rising tide of homeowners who are choosing to ride out what is happening in the housing market and deciding to improve their own homes while they wait and see what happens. In the current climate this makes sense for a lot of homeowners and our franchisees are seeing this at first hand when they visit people to measure up for blinds in new rooms.”

In addition to the rise in the number of requests to measure up new rooms, Thornton says that franchisees are reporting a subtle change in the spending patterns of homeowners who are staying put.

“Time was when people who spruced up their houses would often go for what we called stopgap solutions and spend the bare minimum because they knew they might be moving at some point in the near future,” he said.

“But actually almost the reverse is now true as homeowners are spending money choosing interior design schemes and blinds to get the look which they really want. Maybe this is because they don’t know how long they are staying put for and they may as well have exactly what they want.”

• Apollo