Double Glazing On The Web

So Christmas is over and somehow you managed to shoehorn the entire family; pets, granny, uncles and aunts and the cousins into the one room again to open their presents and watch the Queen’s speech…  but wouldn’t it have been lovely to have had some extra space?  With the credit crunch still looming, the ‘improve or move’ question is larger than ever and a conservatory can often be the best solution.

If you decide to take the ‘improve’ route then read on!  A UPVC conservatory is always high up on people’s wish list and you can be almost certain that you will add instant value to your much loved property.  Virtually maintenance free, double glazing only needs a wipe clean every now and then to keep it looking nearly new. 

Imagine all that extra space!  With various conservatory styles to choose from, you could improve your home both inside and out.  Just think, this Christmas you could be enjoying a mince pie and sherry in the warm new conservatory.  Leaving the kids to play in the lounge if you like!

I know they won’t fit in a stocking, they don’t smell fancy and you certainly can’t wear them, but you’d be surprised how many people are getting them for Christmas.

It seems the credit crunch has left people disillusioned with Christmas; the same old rubbish and useless gift packs flood back into the shops and we find ourselves buying for the sake of buying, recycling the novelty hot chocolate kit or fragranced cooking oil, careful not to give it back to the person we received it from last year… it’s not even the money anymore, although that’s certainly important, it’s more seeing through the sheer nonsense of it all.

Seen in this light, it’s easy to see why couples in particular, are forgoing the usual exchange of gifts and pooling their money instead for more practical purchases such as energy efficient windows. Sounds boring I know, but the benefits are permanent: reduced carbon foot print, reduced waste energy, reduced energy bills, kinder to the environment, home improvement… the list goes on.

Practical? Absolutely. Exciting? Certainly not, but then they’re not going to be left at the back of the draw until next Christmas either. Just make sure you talk it over with the wife before swapping the Channel for the upvc!

You can’t beat a good old home make-over programme with your tea and biscuits, it’s classic ‘triumph over tragedy’ TV! You also can’t help but feel envious.  A team of professionals arriving at your home to reverse your embarrassing amateur attempt at ‘chic’ is nothing short of a dream come true.  In 60 minutes your dwelling could be transformed into magnificence AND you’ll be on telly! 

The recent credit-crunch has led to a significant increase in DIY home improvements and research shows that in order to save money, DIY enthusiast’s are attempting large projects that normally require a skilled professional.  Surely Double Glazing installation isn’t something that anyone would have a stab at……unbelievably, yes it is!

Many DIY projects fail miserably and end up costing considerably more in the long run.  If you are planning DIY home improvements, especially something as ambitious as new windows and doors, be realistic: do you really have the ability, skills and time to do this work yourself?  If a skilled professional isn’t within your budget, perhaps you should consider delaying the project until such a time arrives.  The cost of rectifying your ‘efforts’ could amount to more than it would have cost in the first place for the professional.  It’s also highly likely that your spouse will never let you forget either!

The effect of the recession on householder’s confidence, coupled with the decline in new builds, is having a knock-on impact on the glazing industry. Fewer new builds means fewer new windows and doors. Fewer home improvements mean fewer replacement windows and doors…

There’s no denying that it’s tough and is going to get tougher, although industry will always find a way to adapt and some are better placed than others to weather the storm. South coast based Double Glazing On The Web for example, is an established glazing firm which recognizes the benefits of the internet in reducing costs and overheads, whilst maximizing their client base.

 Web-based sales provide considerable advantages to the sellers, but more importantly they are very customer driven, making the whole buying experience easier and less invasive to for the client. To find out more visit: www.doubleglazingontheweb.co.uk

Heartwarming news for all, and not just those involved in the replacement windows and double glazing markets, a  company involved in the manufacture of windows, doors, and conservatories, which reported profits of just £53,500 in its previous accounts, has just announced a profit of £253,000, that’s a 500 per cent rise over an 18 month period.

The turnaround seems to have been made possible by a reduction in the salary of its highest-paid director from £199,000 to £157,000, and a withdrawal of dividend payouts for the year March 2007 to March 2008 with all profits being transferred to the Company’s reserves.

There are two messages here, I think:

1) All is not doom and gloom

2) Those high salaries are still in existence!

A report from Palmer Market Research, a market research organisation active in the UK building industry,the public sector market for replacement windows continues to offer some business potential. this despite the falling private sector market.  Even so, the market for replacement windows in the social housing sector fell by 4% in 2007.

Palmers subdivide the social housing market into a further two sectors:

• Local authorities and Arms Length Management Organisations
• Housing Associations and other Registered Social Landlords

Robert Palmer, who heads up Palmers, says that the overall downward trend masks differences between the two sub-sectors and, although the local authority market is down, the housing association market is buoyant.

His company’s prediction is for a decline in the replacement window market by 5% in 2010, growing to a 6% decline in 2011 and 2012.  Palmer is also at pains to point out that exterior doors consistently outperform replacement windows.  Based on this fact, he predicts a 3% growth for the exterior door market in 2008, a 2.5% increase in 2009, moving to a slight decline between 2010 and 2012.

He bases these predictions not just on the less saturated market but also on the increased perceived need for home security.

You know, Palmer has a point about home security - so next time, I’ll tell you how our exterior doors can increase the security of your home.

Some conservatory suppliers are reporting up to 45% increases in sales over the past three months.

The probable reason for this trend-bucking statistic is that conservatories are seen as a risk-free way of enlarging the home, thus adding value to the property.  In this very uncertain housing market, moving home is nigh on impossible and there is a very real fear of negative equity.

Adding that conservatory is one way, and a very good way, of safeguarding the value of your property, and giving you more living space.

A recent report by Sky News suggested that the cost of home improvements have risen by at least 20% over the past two years.  Sky itemise the following increases:

• 25% more for a basement conversion
• 21% more for a loft conversion
• 22% more for a conservatory
• 22% more for installation of double glazing

Despite these reported increases, it is still good economic sense in the current financial climate to improve rather than move.

And we really can minimise some of those costs for you.  Double Glazing on the Web does not employ a sales force, so we do not have to pay wages and commissions.  Neither do we indulge in fake ‘money off offers.’  What you see on our site is what you get, so you can budget safe in the knowledge that you won’t be hit with any extra costs.

If you thought that ethical double glazing was a contradiction in terms, it’s time for you to start thinking again.

Following the news that Anglian Double Glazing have gone into receivership, I have now read of two North Eastern double glazing companies that went into receivership at the beginning of the year.  Okay, so not quite hot off the press, but it does convey how the credit crunch is decimating small businesses.

In December of last year, 81 staff lost their jobs when Stockton-based Budget Windows went into administration.  Administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers said: “The business has suffered significant losses as a result of difficult trading conditions over the last few months and the credit crisis causing a squeeze on disposable income.”

This was quickly followed by news, in January of this year, that Pennine Windows (Home Improvements) Ltd) had called in the receivers.  BDO Stoy Hayward were appointed to handle Pennine’s affairs and immediately made 126 of the company’s 143 staff redundant.

What does this have to do with Double Glazing on the Web?  Well, because we don’t have a chain of showrooms (in fact we don’t have any showrooms), and because we don’t have a sales force, DGOTW are not in the position of having to find rents and wages.  This is not only good for our business, its brilliant for you too - we don’t have to add a premium to the cost of our windows, doors, and conservatories so you pay the true price.

To read more about those not quite hot off the press redundancies, click here; then click here to see what makes us so different!.

And next time we’ll look at something more cheerful!

Anglian Home Improvements has been taken over by a syndicate of banks; in return they will reduce the company’s debt by £90 million.

Two of the company’s depots have been closed, and 100 of Anglian’s 1,000 fitting vans have been taken off the road.

Banks involved in the take over are: Bank of America Securities, Bank of Scotland, Barclays, BlueBay Investments, Lloyds TSB and the Royal Bank of Scotland. It’s interesting to note that the Royal Bank of Scotland, the second largest bank in Britain, is itself a casualty of the credit crunch, having just announced an unprecedented loss of £6 billion.

It is also interesting to note that, in April, Anglian appeared on the BBC’s Watchdog programme because of the number of complaints received about the company’s poor workmanship and customer service.

Well, there but for the grace and all that - but the Watchdog programme did make us feel rather superior. Quality, customer service, and honesty are our number one priorities.