As 2021 nears an end, is it too soon to say that we’re towards the end of this pandemic that had left the economy crippled in its initial days?

We definitely do not need a reminder of how 2020 proved to be disastrous across all the sectors. Though everybody had the mindset of spending-less-saving-more as it was an unprecedented calamity, the need to fix eyesores in the house or even have a change of atmosphere seemed to be on top of everyone’s to-do lists.

The initial days saw almost everyone working from home or remotely if their work wasn’t deemed essential. Homes turned to work stations overnight with people looking for extensions, office supplies, or even certain DIY adjustments.

An Irish Times article, based on a survey carried out by an insurance company, published in August this year, talks about the purchase behaviour of Irish homeowners, where a majority have managed limiting their budget to under 5000e and only a small fraction going over and beyond when it came to home improvements.

Call it the need of the hour or a change in the routine, home improvements were not only needed for office purposes but also when it came to other parts of running the household. Working from home didn’t just mean focusing on your career, it also meant minding the family and doing the household chores simultaneously. Some needed space to have a play section for their kids, while others desperately needed to fix certain aspects of the house if they were to be confined within those 4 walls unless there arose an emergency.

British homeowners, on the other hand, created quite a stir in the property markets, not to forget the home improvements sector. According to separate researches conducted, the Brits didn’t mind spending when it came to home offices, home cinemas as well as those ‘snugs’.

While few people relished the idea of actually living through renovations or even minor fixings, this pandemic proved how people can adjust when it comes to adverse circumstances. These renovations seemed to be a pandemic-bred activity for some but a mandatory situation for the rest, since a lot of people had chalked out the process and had the changes underway when March 2020 stuck and were forced to restrict their movements. However, a survey conducted by the leading interiors and home community Houzz.com revealed how a chunk of the population had wanted to usher in these changes since eternity and the pandemic had proved to be the perfect opportunity for the same. Gardening emerged as another popular lockdown activity alongside home improvements.

Life is not a bed of roses and with these changes, came the constraints- family being at home 24 x7, budget and the most important being the shortage of manpower. The initial days of the pandemic saw almost everybody indoors, call it the fear of violating the government regulations or the fear of contracting the virus. Needed to fix the sink? Or perhaps the wallpaper was coming apart? While some chose to wait it out, a lot of people turned DIY experts themselves (come into the picture, TikToks and Instagram reels!)

One year on, we’re in the process of adapting to the changes brought in by the pandemic. No doubt that the aftermath has had far more consequences than the benefits but was it so bad for home improvements after all?