Jane Blakeborough - Research Director at Trend-Monitor - The Top 10 priorities for our Homes in 2022

We first came across Trend Monitor - Founder, Jane Blakeborough, in an article published by KBB Focus, titled: The top 5 priorities for our homes in 2022. Alongside 'Easily Sustainable Homes', and 'Clean Air at Home', at No. 5, we were pleased to see 'Quiet Homes' make the list, saying:

“Noise is very much an invisible pollutant as many layers of sound can build up over time. Whereas previously we may have been able to ignore these layers of sound, working from home, and in particular when on Zoom or in virtual meetings, has made us extra sensitive to the amount of noise we have going on around us in our homes.

Spending more time at home during lockdown has emphasised the detrimental effect of being constantly surrounded by noise from domestic appliances, technology and poor acoustics. This in turn is impacting on our mental health and energy levels.

Quiet Mark, the international consumer and trade champion certification programme associated with the UK Noise Abatement Society charity, is seeing an increased interest in products that ensure that acoustic design is as important as visual design”.

That Top 5 formed part of a Top 10 priorities for our homes in 2022 report by Trend Monitor, an insight management service, specifically for manufacturers and multiple retailers in the UK home improvement sector. 

Jane spoke to us about Trend Monitor’s patient, cautious and measured approach when it comes to analysing trends that impact how we use our home - and how societal factors impact this - over the past two ‘unprecedented’ years. 

“Everyone was talking about covid’s immediate changes on our homes and how this ‘new normal’ would continue in a post covid world. However, many of the immediate changes in behaviour were brought on by fear and uncertainty - not choice - which meant that we were behaving in a way that wasn’t normal thus reducing the changes’ ability for longevity”.

“We wanted to wait for a longer term impact. What can now be seen is that Covid hasn’t necessarily changed that much of our in-home lifestyles but instead sped up certain trends and slowed down others. This is visualised in our Post-COVID Trend Map for the UK Home Improvement Sector, which puts consumer behaviours into context by starting at the top with global megatrends that have been gathering pace long before Covid.  These filter down into a range of macro-trends that have since been impacted by Covid and will have a long term influence on our behaviours at a more local level;  in our homes and on our high streets.”

Image: Click HERE to view the Post-COVID Trend Map for the UK Home Improvement Sector

Listed at No. 1 on Trend Monitor’s list is the desire for an ‘Easily Sustainable Home’, with recycling, water efficiency and reduced food waste as the top consumer priorities within this trend.

“We did some research where we did a diary study called ‘behind the bathroom door’. It followed 50 households and documented their bathroom habits which highlighted the fact that there is a real balance between wanting to be very clean but also wanting to save water. Habits such as having a deep bath to relax or running the shower for five minutes to warm up stay because individuals work hard and naturally feel they deserve that relaxation. Covid has even affected how long we wash our hands. So the messages are mixed between sanitation and saving water. This puts the responsibility back on manufacturers to make it easier for consumers.” 

Trend Monitor noted that although we say we want to adopt more sustainable habits we fall back into our old ways if the habits are difficult or inconvenient. It is this natural behaviour that puts the responsibility upon the manufacturer making 2022 the year for well designed products that make the suitability goals easier to achieve. 

Another trend analysed by Trend Monitor is smart technology, with Voice Activated Homes listed at No. 3 on the Top 10 list. Jane informed us that while there is a lot of smart technology on the market, consumers are saying they don’t want ‘smart for smart’s sake’ but instead smart with a purpose. 

“Consumers tend to ask three key questions when deciding whether or not to buy smart tech. Will it save me money? Will it save me time/ make my life easier? And will it make me feel more secure? If the smart product doesn’t tick at least one of those three requirements, the consumer will say ‘so what?”, explains Jane. 

“And with sustainability being a top priority, consumers are less concerned whether they can turn on their washing machine from their mobile phone, and more interested in a smart appliance that only uses the required amount of water and energy necessary for a specific load”. 

At No. 4 on the Trend Monitor list is ‘Clean Air At Home’. International research by Blueair found that seven in ten people across all generations worry about the air they breathe indoors as we become more aware of indoor air pollutants and viruses. The need to socialise outdoors during Covid also spurred this.

Image: The Quiet Mark certified HealthProtect / Protect is Blueair’s most advanced air purifier to date

“The more we move towards a passive house, the more we shut our doors and windows but this isn’t great for ventilation. With city living there has been a change in what people want from their locations. Where cities were prioritised for better pay and social life, estate agents are saying the priorities are looking into natural light and nearby green spaces.” 

One of the most insightful points raised by Jane was her mentioning of ‘decision paralysis’. Trend Monitor found that during lockdown lack of choice had a detrimental effect on our wellbeing. However, we are now bombarded with too much choice via various advertisements on a plethora of platforms. This bombardment of product choice can lead to ‘decision paralysis’. “On the other hand we have a conflicting trend which shows a developing consumer mindset which prioritises what matters to us and becoming more selective, investing in fewer but better products. These two conflicting trends lie side by side and present an exciting challenge to manufacturers asking them to make a smaller, more targeted choice.” 

With lockdown came a desire for consumers to return to nature and this lifestyle change resulted in a surge in popularity of biophilia and the need to ‘bring the outdoors in’ by means of more natural, wooden surfaces for the home. This desire to connect more with the planet explains why the need for a sustainable home sits at number one on Trend Monitor’s list. However, “while many pieces of research are suggesting that we will eventually move away from this need for nature, I’d say that while it may not be as pronounced as in lockdown, the sentiment looks as if it will carry through, especially spurred by the desire for a quiet home.” 

It is encouraging to see, through Jane and Trend Monitor’s analyses, that the need for quiet is a priority that has risen to the top the past two years. Though sparked by lockdowns, the need for quiet is an ongoing priority maintained by our need to prioritise mental health.

Listen to Episode 36: Jane Blakeborough - Research Director at Trend-Monitor - The Top 10 priorities for our Homes in 2022 - HERE