Guy Hubble, Managing Director of RegaLead, discusses the polarisation of the composite door market and how to transform composite doors with the RegaLead range.
The market for composite doors has seen significant changes in the last few years, with the impact of Instagram making people more aware of how an entrance door can transform the front of a property. This trend has led to premium door options being more popular than ever, with an estimated 2 million doors already supplied into the replacement sector in the last decade, meaning the future lies in replacing those replacements. This means the decisions for changing doors are being made primarily on aesthetics, as homeowners are opting for higher-spec models that replicate the aluminium look, as well as being bolder with colours and glass paired with premium hardware options. The shift in attitude as more people choose high-end spec doors has driven a clear polarisation of the market.
Price-driven vs premium options
Firstly, in terms of price. The market is splitting between basic, price-driven options which are seen as ‘something to fill a hole,’ and higher-spec premium options. Homeowners and private landlords choosing more basic doors are less concerned about the aesthetics and more interested in its functional use – it’s often a distress purchase to replace a failing door.
The other end of the spectrum sees consumers choosing doors mainly for their appearance – a replacement of a replacement on older homes or replacing the standard door fitted on a home built in the last few years. They have a perfectly working door and don’t need another but want to transform the exterior of their home, which reflects similar attitudes to consumers across Europe, who value the entrance door as one of the most important features of their property. This is made clear by the amount of detail that goes into the design of these doors, with care taken over choosing every element. These doors are often purchased with added extras such as sidelights, decorative glass letters and numbers, and on-trend hardware to create a stunning, ‘Insta-worthy’ entrance to their home.
Contemporary and traditional
Secondly, the door market has polarised in style, with a distinct separation between traditional and contemporary. The rise in contemporary door designs has been clear, with many homeowners opting for the sleek styles with more European designs, accented with long bar handles which perfectly suit modern and newbuild properties or offer a modern update for a traditional home, especially if the front of the home is being upgraded.
In tandem, we are also seeing a growing market for more traditional door styles, perfect for the older, Georgian, Edwardian and Victorian-style homes. These designs are more empathetic to the property, with classic heritage-style knobs and knockers and more traditional etched glass, while still providing a stylish, modern-performance door option.
The middle ground
While this polarisation sees the highest and lowest ends of the market gaining market share, the ‘middle ground’ is still where the sales volume lies for many installers – by offering premium upgrades such as glass, colour and hardware options there’s a huge opportunity for installers to upsell on additional features for homeowners who initially were looking at a more standard door offering but can now have a transformational statement for their entrance.
For installers, it is important to keep feet in all camps because you have to give customers what they want. RegaLead provides a wide range of additional options to transform composite doors at both ends of the market. We are tailoring our marketing to clearly identify these segments with our contemporary and heritage brochures for the higher end of the market and an ever-popular essentials brochure for the more price-competitive end.
Whether it’s a transformational or a distress purchase, decorative door products provide a fantastic opportunity for installers to boost profitability on every front door sale.
