Challenges and opportunities of the European DIY market

 

The European DIY market is booming. Fuelled by several interdependent circumstances, like rapid technological development and a surge in post-pandemic renovations, the market has reached new heights and is expected to grow even further. This certainly provides brands in the sector with ample opportunities - as well as serious challenges.

 

 

The European DIY market in numbers

The European DIY market is currently valued at 388 billion euros. The online market is responsible for 66 billion euros of the total, which corresponds to 17%. All figures represent a growth from the previous year, where the entire market was worth 368 billion euros and the online market 56 billion. By next year, analysts expect the online market to rise by a further 12 billion and reach 78 billion euros.

 

Cross-border sales in the online market segment are also on the rise. Currently, these sales account for 21.6 billion euros, 32.8% of the total. A year ago, they were 17.8 billion euros (31.8%), and by next year, they’re expected to reach 26.5 billion euros (34%).

 

 

A chart depicting the growth of the European DIY market. Source: Cross-Border Commerce Europe

 

 

The main reasons behind the increasing success

Several factors have come together to contribute to the rise of the DIY market in Europe.

 

First of all, the increase in post-pandemic home improvement projects lays a great basis for growth. Simultaneously, the availability of detailed step-by-step instructions online builds confidence in consumers that they can actually do various renovation and home improvement projects by themselves.

 

Add to that the increasing availability of DIY materials on online marketplaces, which is further strengthened by well-oiled logistics services that transport potentially bulky, hard-to-carry items right to customers’ doorsteps.

 

And finally, let’s not forget about the development of technology. AI can help anticipate customer needs and suggest additional products novice DIY enthusiasts may not be aware they need for their next project. With VR and AR technologies, customers can better imagine what the finished project will look like, steering them towards success.

 

Altogether, these technologies contribute to the feeling of accomplishment that can turn a novice DIYer into a return customer.

 

 

Illustration of two people working on a DIY project

 

 

The biggest platforms in European online DIY sales

It doesn’t come as a surprise that Amazon dominates the market with a 15.72% market share. eBay comes second with 6.33%, while French DIY retailer Leroy Merlin grabs the third spot with 3.6%.

 

If we exclude non-European players from the list, Leroy Merlin is definitely the top seller with its 27 billion euro annual turnover. An established physical retailer, Leroy Merlin managed to expand its business model to incorporate online sales.

 

Another French marketplace, ManoMano, is next on the list, with a 1.81% market share and a dominant role in purely online DIY sales across Europe. And let’s not forget Bauhaus, a popular German retail chain with 9 billion euros of turnover earned from both on and offline sales, domestic and cross-border alike. Obi, another German retail chain, also expanded its original physical sales online, earning it a 1.44% share of the online market.

 

 

A person comparing tools from the range on offer in a physical DIY store

 

 

Most popular online DIY product categories

Apart from the ubiquitous arts-and-crafts and home decoration sectors (e.g. lamps, textiles, pottery sets, etc.), a recent study found that customers most often seek major appliances (20%), garden and lawn improvement products (14%), as well as home care items (14%) on online marketplaces.

 

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Challenges in the DIY sector

Unfortunately, the stable growth of the sector attracts not only honest brands and sellers but also fraudsters. Scammers, intent on making a quick buck, often infringe on brands’ IP rights and offer fake products to unsuspecting consumers.

 

Due to the rapid development of technology, including AI, fraudsters have a growing array of assets at their hands to create convincing ads, product listings and even entire webshops that are increasingly hard to tell from your original content.

 

Find out how to protect your brand from AI-supported infringements!

 

The growing amount of fake content online can create distrust amongst your customers and even discourage them from looking for your products at all since they won’t be able to tell if they’re getting duped or not. This will negatively affect your reputation and cause you losses in both the short and long term.

 

Fake products are not the only vice in this situation. In fact, your very own, original products can create a similarly dangerous situation, should they be offered by unauthorised sellers at a lower price than what you intend. This is called a grey market, which undermines your pricing strategy, disrupts your distribution network and erodes trust amongst your authorised sellers.

 

This situation often arises when you don’t have complete control over your distribution network. And let’s be honest: Given today’s increasingly complex cross-border distribution networks, it’s becoming harder than ever to stay fully in control.

 

But here’s the good news: You’re not alone. In fact, globaleyez can assist you with all these challenges and more.

 

 

Online brand protection on the European DIY market

We created our services and solutions with the main goal of detecting and eliminating any threats to our clients’ IP rights as soon and as effectively as possible.

 

Our versatile online monitoring services cover any and all types of infringing content appearing online. Product listings on single webshops and on over 150 online marketplaces worldwide, domains, images, apps and social media are all covered by our fully scalable and combinable services. State-of-the-art software solutions led by intuitive human expertise ensure that infringing content is swiftly uncovered, wherever it may be hiding on the internet.

 

But we go way beyond simple detection. We also offer a test purchase service where we buy your product from a suspicious product listing to learn more about its seller and its origins. These purchases are completely anonymous and essential for gathering court-admissible evidence about fraudulent activities.

 

After establishing that the content is indeed fake, we enforce your rights and ensure its removal from the internet. This includes product listings, images, social media posts, ads, domains and any other type of infringing content.

 

Complex situations require complex responses, which is why we developed our grey market solution. Combining all the necessary monitoring and enforcement activities, we can successfully detect grey markets and dismantle them as soon as possible.

 

Similarly, we created our clean marketplaces solution to address the issues arising from fraudulent listings flooding online marketplaces and stifling your original listings. With targeted monitoring and enforcement, we systematically clean the marketplace of infringing product listings and create a perfect environment for your original listing to shine.

 

 

Conclusion

The European DIY market is on the rise, providing ample opportunities for your brand - and, unfortunately, for fraudulent sellers as well. Don’t let fraudsters steal your revenue and damage your reputation!

 

Contact us, and let’s develop an effective online brand protection strategy, perfectly tailored to your exact needs.