DIY retailers enjoyed a solid winter as average spend increased compared with last spring, according to the second Focus Wickes DIY Monitor from Verdict Research.
The survey of 1,500 consumers, who spent more than£100 on DIY activity in the four months to last December, found that average spend in that period increased by 13.2 per cent to£1,925, compared with£1,700 in the four months to last June.
The number of DIY consumers spending more than£1,000 on a project rose by 9.5 per to 29 per cent in winter.
The indications are that DIY spend will remain solid. More than half of those questioned said that they will maintain or increase their DIY expenditure over the next four months.
Sixty per cent of those questioned said that because of high house prices, they would rather improve their homes than move.
Focus Wickes chairman and chief executive Bill Archer said: 'The home improvement market is not only driven by the need to repair, but also the desire to upgrade the home.
'The overall average spend on DIY tasks has increased as DIYers continue to prioritise DIY expenditure over other household spending.'
Spending on DIY is expected to grow from£14 billion last year to£19 billion by 2007.
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