What Tools are Women Looking for Today?

The popularity of the Home & Garden TV Network (HGTV) and the Do It Yourself Channel (DIY) demonstrates how many women are taking on home improvement projects, and not just the easy ones.   Women have become much more adept at using cheap Power Tools for sale, air tools, all types of saws, and even plumbing and electrical tools.   Tools are an important aspect of women being able to handle these renovation projects and complete them like a “pro”.   Besides watching television shows, many women are seeking the assistance of the local home center or hardware stores, and consulting friends or reading books, in order to improve their skills.

When it comes to retailers, shopping in a home improvement center was described as “easy” by nearly one-third of respondents, while one-quarter deemed it “more fun than food shopping.”   Home improvement stores received high marks for their marketing efforts and treatment of women; with 64% of respondents saying the stores did a good job overall. Home improvement stores like Lowe’s and Home Depot are getting in on the action by providing in-store workshops to women. These workshops demonstrate what materials and tools are needed for how-to projects. Television programs and workshops help women become more knowledgeable about tools so they know what items to purchase.

This year (2011), Home Depot is recognizing that while women may be half of its customers, it has not catered to them in ways that translate into a larger market share.    ”People are starting to spend more money again, and we need to participate in that,” said Gordon Erickson, the senior vice president for merchandising and décor at the Home Depot.

“For years, we’ve always had a bad — I don’t want to say a bad reputation, it’s more that people look at our business and think it is male-oriented, dominated,” Mr. Erickson said. “Fifty percent of our customers are female. We need to offer her products that she wants.”

Because of the accelerated interest women have in becoming “do-it-yourselfers”, lines of tools have been created specified to fit them more comfortably.    Some tools designed for today’s women include:

    16 oz. curve claw hammer with a smooth head. This all-purpose hammer is not too heavy on a woman’s wrist, but heavy enough so a woman can do the job right.
    25-foot tape measure. Its width makes it easy to read the numbers and it doesn’t bend when pulled out a few feet.
    10-inch tongue-and-groove pliers. This tool easily controls plumbing fittings and nuts.
    Retractable utility knife with blade storage in the handle. This tool is used for cutting everything from vinyl tiles to drywall. The blade is easy to replace and stores in the handle for safety.
    Ratcheting discount Electric Screwdrivers online with multiple bits. The multiple bits change out easily, depending on if a small or large Phillips or a slotted head is needed. The ratcheting action allows you to keep a steady pressure on the head of the screw while simply twisting the handle in place.

Women Are Making Their Mark on Home Improvement

Women have made their mark in the world of home improvement and repair.   Today, inverter for power tools are being developed that make women feel inspired and empowered.   This is a direct result of the number of women who have taken on their own home improvement and rennovation projects, and who are purchasing home improvement products.   The Wall Street Journal reports that women are buying 61% of major home fix-up products and, according to Forbes, women initiate 80% of all home-improvement purchase decisions, especially when it comes to big-ticket orders like kitchen cabinets, flooring and bathrooms.

Overall, women account for more than $70 billion worth of purchases in the home improvement industry, up from $55 billion in 1995 (according to a recent survey by the Home Improvement Research Institute).  This rising trend is due to women tackling home repair projects on homes they own themselves. In fact, within the first year of home ownership, women spend almost $9,000 on home improvement projects. Contributing to the growing trend of women purchasing cheap power tools sale are home improvement shows and hardware stores catering to women shoppers.

“Women are very influential and powerful consumers when it comes to home improvement projects around the house,” said Rob Cappiello, industry vice president of the National Hardware Show. “In addition, single women are purchasing new homes at twice the rate as single men, which contributes significantly to their increased involvement in do-it-yourself home improvement projects.”

Single women are now the second-largest group of home buyers in the U.S., after married couples, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). Women are now responsible for 21% of home purchases, says the NAR, and at the end of 2010, women-headed households   represented approximately 28% of the U.S. total, or 31 million.

What Renovation Projects Interest Women?

Although many people still consider home improvement projects to be a man’s job, three-quarters of American women ages 25 to 49 say they are doing more home-improvement projects today than five years ago, and a solid 80% plan to tackle at least one home-related project in the next year.  In a national telephone survey conducted by Opinion Research Corporation on behalf of Scott Towels by Kimberly-Clark, the #1 reason women took on home improvement jobs was to save money.   Personal pride and satisfaction was the second most important reason.

Hands-down, the most popular home improvement projects for women are:

    Painting                                                                      86%
    Bathroom remodeling                                               38%
    Wallpapering                                                             35%
    Plumbing                                                                   30%
    Kitchen remodeling                                                   29%
    Tile work                                                                    28%
    Additions or renovations                                           27%
    Electrical work                                                            23%
    Laying carpet                                                              18%
    Window replacement                                                 14%

How To Build The Perfect Pergola!

Building a pergola in your yard is a major DIY project, but adds value to your home, as well as to your garden enjoyment. Adding shade and structure to the garden, a pergola differs from an arbor in that is is usually a more “room like” structure, with posts supporting a roof covering of some type. In other words, an arbor on steroids. Perfect for creating romantic walkways, adding a seating area, or making a portion of the garden a major focal point. If you can dig a post hole and handle a drill and a saw, you can build a pergola with these DIY tutorials! So start planning, an as soon as the weather allows, set aside a weekend to build a pergola for your garden!

Another pergolas… See, you can do this!

 

And finally, if you need some cheap power tools for sale for your pergola, you can visit our online store www.eastmachinery.com, the largest global online trading platform for machinery.