APRIL 2020 | 25
Installer Support
Read online at www.proinstaller.co.uk
CAPITALISING ON KERB APPEAL
With National Home Improvement Month encouraging homeowners to make one change to their
home throughout April, installers have the perfect opportunity to secure additional sales due
to consumers who are looking for ways to improve the kerb appeal of their property. Here David
O’Mara, Marketing Manager at Hörmann UK, shares his key recommendations on the products
installers should be recommending to help customers achieve a visually striking exterior.
According to latest re-
search*, over half of UK home-
owners are planning to complete
home improvements over the
next year, with an estimated
£55billion being spent on reno-
vation projects.
As the nation looks to ‘im-
prove rather than move’, in-
stallers can stay one step ahead
of the competition by recom-
mending innovative solutions
that have been designed and
constructed to help individu-
als add real kerb appeal that
increases the overall value on
their home.
A survey of new homeowners
found that 68% felt kerb appeal
was important to their purchas-
ing decisions, while 52% said a
well maintained / attractive front
door was one of the most impor-
tant factors of achieving strong
kerb appeal**.
So, what solutions should
installers be recommending and
installing throughout National
Home Improvement Month to
support clients in achieving their
perfect exterior?
For many individuals looking
to improve the visual style of the
front of their home, the garage
door can often be forgotten as
the entrance door and windows
take precedence. However, an
increasing number of people are
looking to utilise their garage
space as an additional living
area, such as a home gym or
office area.
To ensure the successful us-
ability of this additional space,
the installation of a thermally
efficient garage door is essential.
However, it is important that
aesthetics and security are also
considered, which is why install-
ers should recommend garage
doors that consider all of these
elements in equal measure.
For garages attached directly to
the house, installers should look
to recommend double-skinned
sectional garage doors, which
feature enhanced sections with a
thermal break to offer U-values
as low as 1.00 W/(m².K). Section-
al garage doors also a feature
double bottom seal and should
be considered to compensate for
any floor unevenness, which can
lead to potential energy losses.
While thermal performance will
be the leading consideration for
homeowners looking to utilise
their garage as an additional
living space, the aesthetics of
the door will also be of great
importance. Here the opportuni-
ty for personalisation is key, as
individuals continue to look for
solutions that can add a bespoke
finish to help their home really
stand out from the crowd.
Hörmann UK’s new Duragrain
surface finishes offer 24 different
decors, featuring an innovative
digital printed finish, which uses
a protective exterior paint to
provide an ultra scratch-resistant
surface to withstand the exter-
nal elements with ease. The 24
stand out finishes, from Concrete
to Rusty Steel and Whitewashed
Oak, have been designed to
provide homeowners with a new
generation of garage doors that
enable them to project their per-
sonality onto the exterior of their
property.
By supplying such a unique
range of garage doors, installers
can offer a range of products
that enable customers to add real
kerb appeal to their home, with-
out compromising on thermal
performance or security. To help
clients in achieving a consistent
look to their exterior, installers
should look to cross sell to com-
plementary entrance doors that
have the same visual style as the
garage door.
With over half of new home-
owners feeling an entrance
door was an important factor in
achieving kerb appeal, it’s impor-
tant that installers are also offer-
ing entrance doors that provide
the highest standard in perfor-
mance, security and style. With an
abundance of timber, composite,
upvc and metal entrance doors
available on the UK market,
installers should help customers
navigate the minefield of choices
to help them find the product
best suited to meet their needs.
Hörmann UK’s Thermo46 and
Thermo65 steel entrance doors
are available in five Duragrain
finishes, enabling homeowners to
achieve a consistent visual style
across the entire property, whilst
also supporting overall thermal
efficiency. Offering U-values up
to 0.87 W/(m².K), the entrance
doors feature a steel door leaf
and aluminium frame, combined
with high break-in-resistance
through the inclusion of a 5-point
security lock, to provide clients
with additional peace of mind
that their property is protected.
Installers should use National
Home Improvement Month this
April as an opportunity to inspire
potential clients in creating a
bespoke finish to the exterior of
their property through easy to
install solutions that will offer the
highest standards in performance
for years to come.
www.hormann.co.uk
*https://www.homebuilding.co.uk/news/estimated-55bn-to-be-spent-on-renovations-in-the-next-12-months-research-suggests/ **https://hoa.org.uk/2019/09/kerb-appeal/