Home renovation is often followed closely by redecoration on some level as consumers look to put the best face on their new spaces.
The recently released 2022 Houzz & Home study, which looks at U.S. home renovation in 2021 and 2022, showed that rug, pillows and throws were the top décor purchases among home renovators in 2021 with nearly half (48% and 47%, respectively) opting for these upgrades vs. investing in more substantial items such as large, furniture small furniture and even artwork (39% each).
These categories align with the HTT sister publication Furniture Today’s Strategic Insights study conducted earlier this year. It found consumers were mostly likely to ponder replacing decorative pillows (73%) and area rugs (70%) if they were dissatisfied with what they currently had in place, with some furniture items following close behind.
Although the percentages differ — the higher Furniture Today numbers reflect possible purchases, while the Houzz study refers to actual purchases — the thinking among respondents is similar.
For instance, buying or replacing mirrors scored near the bottom of both lists, while window treatments and lamps fell into the middle ground on both surveys.
Of note on the Houzz & Home study, which was completed by 70,000 U.S. Houzz users, is that large furniture and artwork purchases declined in popularity over the previous year, with furniture down five percentage points from 44% and artwork falling three points from 42%.
The one category with the biggest jump — albeit still at the bottom of the list — was holiday décor, which rose to 26%.
About the data
Furniture Today Strategic Insights fielded an online survey in January and February 2022 to a nationally representative sample of 755 consumers to assess their shopping preferences when it comes to buying home furnishings. For additional information about the survey, please contact Joanne Friedrick, research editor, at [email protected].
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I’m Joanne Friedrick, research editor for the Home Furnishings Division. I began my career as a newspaper editor and then became a trade journalist, covering myriad industries including pension funds, supermarkets, gourmet food and security systems, just to name a few. Most recently, I entered the home furnishings category as a contributor for HFN and Home Textiles Today before transitioning into research where I now get to tell the stories behind the numbers for all of the HFD titles.