A Potential Upside to the COVID-19 Pandemic: Rising Demand for Decking

A recent article demonstrated that, even as the US economy struggles to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, some industries are seeing sales gains. One winner: the decking market.

While this may seem surprising, adding a deck to a home has always been a popular home improvement project, given its ability to add value and recreational space to a home. Furthermore, as the COVID-19 pandemic has spread, interest in adding decks has grown due to:

• homeowners with time on their hands looking to complete do-it-yourself (DIY) projects – including the installation of a deck
• people unable to travel due to COVID-19 restrictions having “staycations”, and often installing a deck to provide additional space for recreation
• increasing recognition that being outdoors can lessen the risk of spreading coronavirus, encouraging homeowners to add decks for family gatherings

While wood has traditionally accounted for the large majority of decking demand and will continue to do so going forward, composite and plastic lumber decks will see gains in market share, supported by:

• interest in installing decks made from materials that require less maintenance than natural wood
• manufacturer efforts to create materials that more closely resemble natural wood lumber
• consumer interest in composite and plastic lumber decks because of their nonporous surfaces, which inhibit damage from plants and moisture

For more information and discussion of opportunities, see The Freedonia Group’s extensive collection of off-the-shelf research, including the Wood & Competitive Decking report. Freedonia also offers an expanding catalog of COVID-19 Economic Impact reports, which highlight how various industries are responding to the current crisis with a comparison to recent recessions. Freedonia Custom Research is also available for questions requiring tailored market intelligence.