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We are all well aware that there are tough times ahead for high street retailers, each set of sales figures released shows that consumers are beginning to spend less and less as the credit crunch hits home.
Experience shows that when homeowners are unable to move house they will often spend money on improving their home instead and kitchens and bathrooms will always be the first rooms to benefit.
For some a new kitchen or bathroom is a great way to improve their homes and make it a more desirable property to potential buyers when less houses are being sold. Others may be able to use some of their property's equity to pay for the kitchen or bathroom they have always dreamed of without having to move home.
For KBB retailers this is a real opportunity and the message is clear, consumers who want to improve their home will be looking for high quality, value for money and more importantly, peace of mind.
New regulations on consumer protection introduced by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) earlier this year are good news for specialist retailers as they reinforce the Government's drive to eradicate rogue traders. For the retailers operating in a more competitive market it means that those who operate fairly and have invested in offering the very best consumer protection and providing evidence that they are a reputable company will benefit from more customers.
We will never eradicate rogue traders from our industry but it is good to see that the Government has followed up on the TrustMark scheme with these new regulations.
TrustMark is a national scheme that helps consumers find reliable and trustworthy professional tradesmen to carry out repairs and improvements to their homes from a database of members that have all satisfied the same strict criteria for membership.
The KBSA has recently been granted ‘approved scheme operator' status within the TrustMark scheme, allowing members to offer even more peace of mind to a cautious homeowner.
The KBSA's own consumer survey regularly shows that consumers feel protected if a firm has been recommended, is a member of a trade association and offers financial security.
Those retailers who can demonstrate that they are a member of a recognised association, offer insurance backed consumer protection and TrustMark accreditation are therefore well placed to be first choice for consumers in a tough market.
For further information, please go to the KBSA website at http://www.kbsa.org.uk/
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